紫叶秋海棠 zi ye qiu hai tang

Herbs. Rhizomes elongate, to 1.2 cm in diam. Stems to 100 cm, to 1.5 cm in diam., densely hairy. Leaves basal and cauline; stipules caducous, ovate-lanceolate, 8-19 × 5-9 mm, abaxially densely pilose, margin ciliate, apex acute; petiole 4-24 cm, hairy; blade purple, ovate-triangular, asymmetric, 6.5-23 × 4.5-18 cm, densely hairy, venation palmate, base oblique, cordate, margin irregularly serrulate and ciliate, shallowly lobed, apex acute to acuminate. Inflorescences hairy; peduncle 8-14 cm; bracts caducous, ovate-lanceolate, 14-15 × 8-9 mm, densely villous, margin denticulate, apex acute. Staminate flowers: pedicel 1.7-2.6 cm; tepals 4, pink, outer 2 ovate, ca. 1.8 × 1.2-1.3 cm, abaxially villous, inner 2 oblong, 1.1-1.2 × ca. 0.7 cm; stamens ca. 150; filaments fused to halfway, 1.6-3.9 mm; anthers obovoid-oblong, 0.9-1.4 mm. Pistillate flowers: pedicel 1.3-1.9 cm; ovary densely villous, 2-loculed; placentae axile, bilamellate; tepals 5, pink, broadly ovate to oblong, unequal, largest 1.5-1.6 × 1-1.1 cm, abaxially pilose, smallest 1.5-1.6 × 0.8-1.1 cm; styles 2, fused to halfway, 3.9-5.1 mm; stigmas 2-cleft, spiraled. Capsule nodding, unequally 3-winged; abaxial wing ligulate, ca. 1.6 × 1.2 cm; lateral wings to 1.2 cm.

● Forest understories; 900-1700 m. Yunnan (Jinping, Pingbian).

This species is similar to Begonia villifolia but differs by its rhizomatous habit and the ligulate abaxial wing of the capsule.