四川离蕊茶 si chuan li rui cha

Shrubs 1-4 m tall. Young branches grayish brown; current year branchlets grayish yellow, slender, glabrous. Petiole 0.6-1.5 cm, abaxially glabrous, adaxially hirtellous; leaf blade oblong to oblanceolate, 6-12.5 × 2-4 cm, thinly leathery, abaxially pale green, adaxially dark green, both surfaces glabrous, midvein raised on both surfaces, secondary veins 6 or 7 on each side of midvein, abaxially obscure, and adaxially visible to slightly raised, base cuneate, margin widely spinulose-denticulate, apex long acuminate to caudate. Flowers axillary, solitary or paired, 4-5 cm in diam., subsessile. Bracteoles and sepals 9 or 10, ± persistent after anthesis, crustaceous, outside white pubescent, inside glabrous, margin broadly membranous; outer 4 or 5 bracteoles and sepals lunate, 1.5-3 mm; inner 5 bracteoles and sepals suborbicular, 5-10 mm. Petals 6-8, white, obovate, 2.5-3.5 × 2-3 cm, outside apically white pubescent, basally connate for ca. 8 mm. Stamens numerous, ca. 2.5 mm; filaments glabrous; outer filament whorl basally connate for 5-10 mm. Ovary subglobose, ca. 2 mm, densely tawny tomentose; styles 3(or 4), distinct, 2-2.5 cm, basal 2/3 to 3/4 sparsely white pilose. Capsule dark brown, subglobose, 1.5-2 cm in diam., 3-loculed with l seed per locule; pericarp ca. 1 mm thick, white pilose. Seeds brown, reddish brown pubescent. Fl. Jan-Mar, fr. Sep.

● Forests; 1200-1800 m. Sichuan (Emei Shan).