西南虎刺 xi nan hu ci

Shrubs, 1-3 m tall. Branches densely hirtellous, with spines 4-25 mm, persistent. Petiole of developed leaves 1-2 mm, glabrous or pilosulous; leaf blade drying papery, lanceolate or oblong-lanceolate, 3-7.5 × 0.9-2.4 cm, adaxially glabrous, abaxially glabrous or hirtellous along veins when young, base cuneate or rounded, margins entire to irregularly serrulate and thinly revolute, apex acuminate; midrib thinly prominulous adaxially; secondary veins 5-8(-10) pairs; stipules quickly deciduous, interpetiolar, broadly triangular, usually aciculate. Pedicels ca. 2 mm. Calyx glabrous; hypanthium portion obconic, ca. 1 mm, lobed for ca. 1/2; lobes 4(or 5), triangular to subulate-triangular. Corolla white, ca. 12 mm, outside glabrous; lobes ovate-triangular. Drupes ca. 5 mm in diam. Fl. Apr, fr. winter-spring.

● Forests, forest margins, roadsides, rocky mountains; 1000-2500 m. Sichuan, Yunnan.

Naiki and Nagamasu (Amer. J. Bot. 91: 664-671. 2004) reported that all flowers of this species seen resemble the long-styled form of distylous species.