Benkara sinensis (Lour.) Ridsdale

Species

Angiosperms > Gentianales > Rubiaceae > Benkara

Characteristics

Shrubs or small trees, sometimes scandent, many branched, 1-7 m tall; branches compressed to terete, rather stout, yellowish brown hirtellous or-pilosulous, with thorns 4-15 mm. Petiole 5-15 mm, yellowish hirtellous to-pilosulous or glabrescent; leaf blade drying papery to thickly papery, ovate-elliptic, elliptic-oblong, or ovate, 2-21 × 1.5-9.5 cm, adaxially glabrous, abaxially glabrescent to strigillose, hirtellous, or pilosulous at least on principal veins, base cuneate or slightly rounded, apex acute or shortly acuminate; secondary veins 5-8 pairs, in abaxial axils with pilosulous domatia; stipules triangular to narrowly triangular, 3-5 mm, strigillose to pilosulous, hirtellous, or glabrescent, long acuminate. Inflorescences congested-cymose, often umbelliform, several to many flowered, 2.5-4 × 3-4.5 cm, densely pilosulous to strigose or strigillose; peduncle 3-5 mm; bracts lanceolate to ovate, 1.5-2.5 mm, acute to acuminate; pedicels 0.5-1.5 mm. Calyx densely strigose to strigillose; ovary portion ellipsoid to cylindrical, 1-1.2 mm; limb 3-4 mm, shallowly to deeply lobed; lobes narrowly triangular or ovate-triangular, 1-4 mm, acute. Corolla white or yellow, outside puberulent to glabrous; tube (12-)15-24 × 1-4 mm; lobes elliptic-oblong to oblanceolate, 5-9 × 4-4.5 mm, acute. Fruiting pedicels to 5 mm. Berry globose, 8-12 mm in diam., pilosulous to strigillose or glabrous; seeds ca. 5 mm. Fl. Mar-Dec, fr. May-Feb.
Life form -
Growth form tree
Growth support free-standing
Foliage retention deciduous
Sexuality hermaphrodite
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Mature height (meter) 1.0 - 7.0
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JanFebMar
AprMayJun
JulAugSep
OctNovDec
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JanFebMar
AprMayJun
JulAugSep
OctNovDec
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Environment

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Hardiness (USDA) 8-12

Usage

Uses medicinal
Edible -
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Cultivation

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Distribution

Benkara sinensis world distribution map, present in China, Thailand, Taiwan, Province of China, and Viet Nam

Conservation status

Benkara sinensis threat status: Least Concern

Identifiers

LSID urn:lsid:ipni.org:names:60453100-2
WFO ID wfo-0000837863
COL ID LHB8
BDTFX ID -
INPN ID -
Wikipedia (EN)
Wikipedia (FR)

Synonyms

Oxyceros sinensis Randia stenantha Randia sinensis Benkara sinensis Fagerlindia sinensis Gardenia chinensis Aidia sinensis Gardenia sinensis Randia chinensis Randia parvula var. mollis Randia stenantha var. tomentosa Randia fasciculata var. multiflora Randia crassispina Solena sinensis