长苞菝葜 chang bao ba qia

Smilax elegans Wallich ex Kunth subsp. subrecta Noltie.

Vines climbing, unarmed. Stem branched, 1--5 m, woody, smooth. Petiole 0.5--1.5(--2) cm, narrowly winged for 1/2--2/3 its length; abscission zone apical; tendrils usually present. Leaf blade abaxially glaucous, ovate, oblong-ovate, or triangular-lanceolate, 3.5--9 × 1--5 cm. Inflorescence of 1 umbel, basally not prophyllate; peduncle 5--12 mm, slightly compressed, usually slightly shorter than petiole; umbels of both sexes 10--30-flowered, base thickened; bracteoles many, persistent. Male flowers: tepals greenish or reddish, 2--2.5 × 0.7--1 mm; stamens very short. Female flowers: tepals 2--2.5 mm; staminodes 6. Berries blue-black, globose, 5--7 mm in diam. Fl. May--Jun, fr. Dec.

Forests, thickets, shaded places along valleys; 1000--3000 m. Guizhou, Sichuan, Xizang, Yunnan [Bhutan, India, Myanmar].