北天门冬 bei tian men dong

Asparagus borealis S. C. Chen; A. dolichorhizomatus J. M. Ni & R. N. Zhao.

Herbs dioecious. Rhizomes creeping, stolonlike, 1.2--1.8 mm thick., with spaced roots. Stems erect, usually simple, 10--30 cm, striate or striate-ridged. Cladodes in fascicles of 5--7, spreading, falcate, 0.4--2(--3.2) cm × ca. 0.7 mm, subterete, slightly flattened, indistinctly grooved. Leaves scarcely spurred. Inflorescences developing after cladodes. Flowers of both sexes paired; pedicel 3.5--4 mm, articulate distally. Male flowers: perianth pale purple, ca. 7 mm; stamens unequal, outer ones longer than inner, filaments adnate to perianth segments for ca. 3/4 their length. Female flowers: perianth ca. 4 mm; aborted stamens 6. Berry ca. 7 mm in diam., ca. 3-seeded. Fl. May, fr. Aug.

* Thickets; 2200--2300 m. Qinghai.