厚叶木莲 hou ye mu lian

Trees, to 16 m tall, to 30 cm d.b.h. Bark grayish black. Twigs thick and strong, glaucous and glabrous; vegetative buds pale yellow to dark brown villous. Stipular scar 2-3 mm. Petiole thick and strong, 3-5 cm; leaf blade obovate-elliptic to obovate-oblong, 12-32 × 6-10 cm, thickly leathery, rigid, both surfaces glabrous, abaxially pale green, adaxially deep green and glossy, secondary veins 12-14 on each side of midvein and inconspicuous on both surfaces, reticulate veins inconspicuous, base cuneate, apex acute. Peduncle thick and strong, ca. 1 cm in diam., glabrous; bract scar 1, ca. 5 mm basal to tepals. Flowers fragrant. Tepals 9(or 10), white; outer 3 tepals obovate, 7-8 × 3-3.5 cm; middle 3 tepals obovate, 5.5-6 cm, fleshy; inner 3(or 4) tepals obovate, ca. 5 × 2.5 cm, fleshy, base narrowed and forming a claw; innermost tepal narrower and longer, ca. 5.5 × 2 cm. Stamens ca. 1.2 cm; filaments ca. 1 mm, basally connate; connective exserted and forming a mucro; anthers ca. 1 cm. Gynoecium ovoid, ca. 2.2 × 1.8 cm; carpels ca. 5 mm; ovules 10-12 per carpel; styles 1-2 mm. Fruit ellipsoid, ca. 7 × 4.5 cm; mature carpels 38-46, 2-2.5 cm, abaxially furrowed, apex shortly beaked. Seeds 3 or 4, orbicular, 5-6 mm. Fl. May, fr. Sep-Oct.

● Montane forests; 800-1500 m. SC Guangdong.

This species is grown as an ornamental and used for timber.