头序瑞香 tou xu rui xiang

Daphne shillong Banerji.

Shrubs evergreen, to 2.5 m. Bark grayish brown; branches ascending, very finely white tomentose, quickly glabrescent. Leaves alternate; petiole to 10 mm; leaf blade glossy dark green adaxially, paler abaxially, lanceolate to oblong-lanceolate, 5-13 × 1.6-3.5(-5) cm, leathery, both surfaces glabrous or abaxially puberulous, soon glabrous, base cuneate, apex long acuminate; lateral veins 9-12 per side of midrib, very oblique. Inflorescences terminal, sometimes on short lateral branches, capitate, 12-20-flowered; peduncle very short. Pedicel to 3 mm, finely tomentose. Calyx white, with green base; tube ca. 15 × 3 mm, exterior pubescent; lobes 4, triangular-lanceolate, ca. 10 × 4 mm, margin slightly involute, apex acute to acuminate. Stamens 8, lower whorl inserted at middle of calyx tube, upper whorl in throat; anthers ca. 2 mm. Disk cup-shaped, ca. 1 mm, margin serrate. Ovary cylindric-ovoid, ca. 4 × 2 mm, glabrous; style very short but distinct; stigma discoid, ca. 1.5 mm wide. Drupe orange-red, ovoid, ca. 15 × 10 mm. Fl. Oct-Nov.

Dense montane forests; 1800-2100(-2800) m. Xizang [Bangladesh, Bhutan, NE India, E Nepal].

This Chinese record is based on Kingdon Ward 10930 (BM), the first record for the Flora area.