峨眉矮桦 e mei ai hua

Betula potaninii Batalin var. trichogemma Hu ex P. C. Li, Acta Phytotax. Sin. 17(1): 91. 1979.

Shrubs or trees to 4 m tall; bark gray-brown. Branchlets brown, densely grayish tomentose. Bud scales densely grayish tomentose. Petiole ca. 2 mm, densely villous; leaf blade ovate-elliptic or elliptic, 1.5-3 × 0.8-1.5 cm, abaxially yellow-brown tomentose along veins, adaxially pubescent along midvein, base rounded or broadly cuneate, margin obtusely simply serrate, rarely mucronate serrate, apex acute or obtuse; lateral veins 11-14 on each side of midvein, raised abaxially, deeply impressed adaxially. Female inflorescence oblong-cylindric, 1.2-1.6 cm × 3-4 mm; bracts ca. 4 mm, densely pubescent and ciliolate, 3-lobed, middle lobe ovate-oblong, lateral lobes obovate, ca. 2/3 as long as middle lobe. Nutlet suborbicular, 2-2.5 × 1.8-2.2 mm, sparsely pubescent, with very narrow wings. Fl. Jun, fr. Jul-Aug.

* Thickets on cliffs; 2400-3100 m. Sichuan (Emei Shan)

A. K. Skvortsov indicates that this species is very similar to Betula calcicola and B. jiulungensis, and further studies may show that it is conspecific with one of them.