台湾赛楠 tai wan sai nan

Machilus konishii Hayata, J. Coll. Sci. Imp. Univ. Tokyo 30(1): 240. 1911; Persea konishii (Hayata) Kostermans.

Medium-sized or large-sized trees, up to 2 m d.b.h. Bark dark brown, smooth. Branchlets brown-red, striate, lenticellate, with orbicular leaf scars; young branchlets red-black. Leaves alternate, petiolate; leaf blade oblong-obovate or oblong-lanceolate, 6.5-8 × (1.8-)2-3 cm, leathery, pubescent abaxially, glabrous adaxially, venation elevated abaxially, impressed adaxially, lateral veins 5-7 pairs, arising from midrib at a 40° angle, transverse veins and veinlets ± conspicuous on both surfaces, base broadly cuneate, apex abruptly acuminate, acumen obtuse and up to 1 cm. Cymose panicle terminal or axillary, yellowish brown villous, several branched; branches divaricate. Perianth tube short; perianth lobes 6, pilose outside but villous inside, unequal, outer 3 smaller, narrowly ovate, ca. 3 × 1.2-1.3 mm, inner 3 larger, ovate, 3.6-4 × 1.8-2.5 mm, obtuse at apex, many nerved, conspicuously valvate. Fertile stamens 9, inserted on throat of perianth tube, almost equal, 3-3.5 mm; filaments 2-3 mm, glabrous except villous at base, complanate, those of 3rd whorl each with 2 dilated glands at base, other filaments glandless; glands broadly reniform, stalked, complanate, ca. 1 mm; anthers of 1st and 2nd whorls ca. 1 mm, obtuse, 4-celled, cells introrse, upper 2 smaller, but anthers of 3rd whorl a little shorter than those of 1st and 2nd whorls, 4-celled, upper 2 cells smaller and introrse, lower 2 cells larger and extrorse. Staminodes subulate, 1.2-1.5 mm. Ovary ovoid, ca. 1 mm; style elongate, ca. 2 mm; stigma truncate. Fruit globose, ca. 7 mm, ca. 7 mm, with persistent, reflexed, and barely dilated perianth lobes on top. Fl. May-Jul, fr. Aug-Sep.

● Evergreen broad-leaved forests; ca. 2500 m. C and S Taiwan.

Chang (Fl. Taiwan 2: 458. 1972), following Kostermans (Reinwardtia 6: 192. 1962), regarded this species as a member of the genus Persea. However, in the type material, the outer perianth lobes are much smaller than the inner ones, so two of the present authors (Li and Li) believe it is better to regard this species as a member of Nothaphoebe.