折枝天门冬 zhe zhi tian men dong

Asparagus soongoricus Iljin.

Herbs dioecious. Roots 4--5 mm thick. Stems erect, 30--80 cm, smooth; branches usually slightly flexuous, sometimes indistinctly striate. Cladodes in fascicles of 1--5, generally spreading horizontally or downward at an obtuse angle, usually straight, 1--2.5 cm × 1--1.5 mm, suberete, slightly flattened, sometimes irregularly grooved. Leaf spur short, not spinescent. Inflorescences developing after cladodes. Flowers of both sexes paired. Male flowers: pedicel 4--6 mm; perianth yellowish green, campanulate, 4--5 mm; filaments adnate to perianth segments for ca. 1/2 their length. Female flowers: pedicel 5--7 mm, articulate at or near apex; perianth 3--4 mm. Fl. May--Jun.

Sandy soil; 1300--2000 m. SW Xinjiang [Kazakhstan].