窄瓣梅花草 zhai ban mei hua cao

Stem 1, 2.5-4 cm, with 1 leaf usually distally or near apex. Basal leaves 6-9, forming a rosette; stipules brown fimbriate at margin; petiole to 1 cm; leaf blade abaxially greenish, adaxially deep green, usually ovate-cordate, 5-7 × ca. 4 mm, inconspicuously 3-veined abaxially at base, base cordate, sometimes subtruncate, apex rounded. Cauline leaf sessile, semiamplexicaul, similar to basal ones but much smaller, base sometimes with a few rusty brown appendages. Flower 6-8 mm in diam.; hypanthium shortly campanulate. Sepals inconspicuously purple punctate, oblong or ovate-lanceolate, 3-4 × ca. 1.5 mm, margin entire, apex obtuse. Petals green, densely purple-brown punctate, spatulate or ovate-oblanceolate, 5-7 × ca. 1.5 mm, base abruptly contracted into a claw ca. 1.5 mm, margin entire, indistinctly erose, or undulate, apex obtuse or acute. Anthers ellipsoid, ca. 0.5 mm; filaments 3-4 mm; staminodes terete, discoid, ca. 1.5 mm, shorter than stamens, stalk ca. 0.5 × 0.8 mm, lamina dark purple, ca. 1 × 1.5 mm, apex rounded, entire. Ovary superior, ovoid; style ca. 1-1.5 mm; stigma 3-lobed, lobes reflexed, obovate. Capsule ovoid. Seeds brown, glossy. Fl. Jul.

* Forest margins, alpine meadows; ca. 2900 m. SW Sichuan (Muli Zang Zu Zizhixian).

In habit, this species resembles the two varieties of Parnassia yunnanensis. However, P. yunnanensis differs in having white, obovate petals; var. longistipitata differs in having longer-stalked staminodes; and var. yunnanensis differs in having apically inconspicuously 3-dentate staminodes.