雅致含笑 ya zhi han xiao

Trees, to 5 m tall, with appressed indument. Old twigs dark brown, glabrous, scattered with lenticels; young twigs grayish brown, densely pubescent; buds ovoid, 1.5-2 × 0.7-1.2 cm, brown tomentose. Stipules free from petiole. Petiole 0.5-1 cm, pubescent, without a stipular scar, base slightly flattened; leaf blade obovate-oblong to rarely oblong, 9-18 × 4.5-5.5 cm, leathery, abaxially densely brown pubescent, adaxially glabrous, midvein abaxially prominent, secondary veins 11-13 on each side of midvein, reticulate veins dense and prominent when dry, base broadly cuneate to suborbicular, apex cuspidate. Brachyblasts ca. 1 cm, brown tomentose. Tepals 9, white, obovate to obovate-oblong, ca. 3 × 1.5-2 cm. Stamens many, ca. 1.5 cm; connective exserted and forming a ca. 1.5 mm mucro; anthers ca. 1 cm. Gynophore ca. 8 mm, densely pubescent; gynoecium cylindric, 1.2-1.8 cm, densely pubescent; carpels ovoid, ca. 2.5 mm, densely pubescent. Fruiting gynophore 1.3-1.5 cm. Fruit cylindric, 6-7 cm; mature carpels broadly obovoid to subglobose, 1.1-1.2 × ca. 1 cm, slightly white lenticellate. Seeds 1 per carpel. Fl. Apr, fr. Oct.

● Open fields. Zhejiang (Qingyuan).

This plant may be a hybrid with Michelia cavaleriei as one of the parents. It is cultivated at the South China Botanical Garden, from where the holotype was collected.