薄叶山柑 bao ye shan gan

Capparis tenera var. dalzellii J. D. Hooker & Thomson.

Shrubs or vines, ca. 3 m tall. Twigs with thin or incurved stipular spines; new twigs glabrous or shortly tomentose but soon glabrescent, with 3-4 mm recurved sharp stipular spines. Petiole 3-5 mm, slender; leaf blade elliptic, ovate, or obovate, 4-7 × 1.8-4 cm, 1.8-2.3 × as long as wide, herbaceous to subleathery, midvein thin and adaxially slightly impressed from middle toward base, secondary veins 4-6 on each side of midvein, reticulate veins slightly obvious, base cuneate to nearly rounded, apex acute to subacuminate and with a 3-7(-10) mm tip. Inflorescences superaxillary rows, (1 or)2- or 3-flowered. Pedicel 1.5-2.5 cm, slender, glabrous. Sepals 4-5 × 2-3 mm, outside glabrous, inside and margin sometimes with trichomes; sepals of outer whorl slightly broadly ovate, inside slightly concave; sepals of inner whorl slightly narrowly elliptic, apex acute to obtuse. Petals white; anterior pair 4-7 × ca. 2 mm, both surfaces tomentose; posterior pair red near base, slightly broad, slightly shorter. Stamens [8-]14-18(-21); filaments ca. 1.5 cm; anthers ca. 1.3 mm. Gynophore 1.5-2.5 cm, glabrous; ovary pyriform, 1-1.5 mm including beaklike style, 1-loculed; placentae 2; ovules several. Fruit red when mature, globose, 7-10 mm in diam., apex rarely shortly tipped; fruiting pedicel and gynophore ca. 0.5 mm thick. Seeds 1 or 2(-4) per fruit, ca. 5 × 4 mm. Fl. Feb-Apr, mature fruit and seed not seen [fr. Aug in Thailand].

Forests; (200-)1200-1300(-2000) m. S Xizang, W Yunnan [NE India, Myanmar, Sri Lanka, N Thailand; Africa, Indian Ocean islands].