黄球花 huang qiu hua

Ruellia chinensis Nees in A. Candolle, Prodr. 11: 147. 1847; Hemigraphis chinensis (Nees) T. Anderson ex Hemsley; Sericocalyx chinensis (Nees) Bremekamp.

Herbs or subshrubs, 30-50(-150) cm tall, isophyllous. Stems often procumbent and rooting at base, 4-angled when young, hirsute, basally slightly woody. Petiole 4-10 mm; leaf blade obovate, obovate-elliptic, or sometimes oblong-elliptic, 1.5-11 × 1-4.5 cm, both surfaces sparsely hispid, adaxially densely covered with cystoliths, midvein impressed, secondary veins 5 on each side of midvein, purplish, and scabrous, base attenuate and decurrent onto petiole, margin crenate to slightly dentate, apex acute to shortly acuminate. Inflorescences axillary or terminal, subcapitate; bracts imbricate, broadly to narrowly ovate, 1.5-2 cm, hirsute, usually 3-veined, apically beaked to a subobtuse point; bracteoles linear, ca. 9 mm, resembling calyx lobes. Calyx 5-11 mm, subequally 5-lobed to base; lobes linear-lanceolate, ca. 10 × 0.5 mm, outside gland-tipped pilose, inside apically pubescent, apex attenuate. Corolla yellow, 1.6-2 cm, straight; tube basally cylindric and ca. 1 mm wide for ca. 5 mm then gradually widened to ca. 1 cm at mouth, outside pubescent, inside villous; lobes orbicular, ca. 4 mm in diam. Stamens 4, included or longer pair slightly exserted; shorter filament pair ca. 2 mm; longer filament pair ca. 5 mm; anther thecae oblong, ca. 2 mm. Ovary pilose; style ca. 2 cm, villous; stigma pilose. Capsule ca. 1 cm, pubescent, 8-seeded. Seeds yellowish, broadly ovate in outline, ca. 2 × 2 mm, subglabrous; areole large. Fl. Oct-Mar, fr. Jun-Jul.

Moist hollows along streams; near sea level to 1300 m. Guangdong, Guangxi, Hainan [Cambodia, Laos, Vietnam].