娑罗双 suo luo shuang

Trees to 40 m tall, ± tardily deciduous; trunk to 2 m in diam.; crown spreading. Bark gray to dark reddish brown, becoming fissured and flaky; inner bark not laminated; wood hard; heartwood dark brown. Branchlets densely buff scabrous-pubescent. Stipules fugacious, lanceolate, small, lepidote; petiole 2-2.5 cm, buff scabrous-pubescent; leaf blade 10-40 × 5-24 cm, ovate to oblong, thinly leathery, midvein prominent abaxially and conspicuous adaxially, lateral veins ca. 12 pairs prominent abaxially, tertiary veins densely scalariform, glabrous, base obtuse to cordate, apex acuminate. Flowers subsessile, on panicles to 25 cm; branches racemose, secund; bracts caducous, minute. Petals strongly contorted, creamy-yellow or sometimes with a medium pink stripe, 1-1.5 cm × ca. 5 mm, linear. Sepals ovate, to 2 mm in bud, subequal, densely buff pubescent. Stamens many; anthers panduriform, setose toward apex; connective appendages short, stout, exceeding anther apex, sparsely setose. Ovary ovoid, densely buff pubescent. Fruit sepals unequal, spatulate, sparsely pubescent, 3 longer to 8 × 1.5 cm, 2 smaller to 3.5 × 0.5 cm; nut ovoid, ca. 5 × 12 mm. Fl. Feb-May, fr. May-Jul.

Gregarious in savanna woodlands; below 800 m. SE Xizang [Bhutan, India, Nepal].

This is a rare species in China.