Manulea juncea Benth.

Herb, possibly perennial, taproot woody, up to c. 7 mm diam. at crown, stems up to c. 600-750 mm tall, up to 3-4 mm diam., eventually woody, several from the crown, simple to laxly branched low down, initially glandular-puberulous, soon glabrescent on lower part but basal cells of larger hairs often persisting as ± scabrid projections, inflorescence axis sometimes persistently glandular, stems laxly leafy to bracteate throughout. Leaves alternate, often with dwarf axillary shoots, distant, c. 15-75 x 2-10 mm, rapidly smaller upwards and passing into linear bracts, oblanceolate, apex ± acute, base narrowed into a petiolar part decurrent on the stem in two very inconspicuous ridges, margins with c. 2-9 pairs of somewhat falcate teeth, prominent in larger leaves, becoming obscure in smaller ones, which then pass into entire bracts, both surfaces at first glandular-puberulous, hairs up to 0.1-0.3 mm long, soon glabrescent though basal cells may persist as ± scabrid projections. Flowers solitary in terminal moderately dense racemes, the lower flowers with a bud interposed between bract and pedicel, this growing out into a short simple bracteate branch terminating in a 2-several-flowered raceme. Bracts (lowermost) c. 3-4 x 0.3-0.4 mm. Pedicels c. 2-3 mm long, uppermost c. 1 mm. Calyx very obscurely bilabiate, tube 0.1-0.2 mm long, anticous lobes 2.2-3.5 x 0.5-0.6 mm, enlarging to 4.5 mm in fruit, posticous slightly narrower, lanceolate, minutely glandular-puberulous all over, a few stouter hairs sometimes present on back, the basal cell of each hair persisting as a ± scabrid projection, margins with eglandular hairs up to 0.2-0.4 mm long. Corolla tube (8.5-) 10-15.5 x 1.2-1.5 mm in throat, cylindric, upper half abruptly expanded, limb almost regular, 7-10 mm across lateral lobes, posticous lobes 3-3.75 x 2-2.5 mm, anticous lobe 3-4.5 x 2.5-3 mm, all lobes broadly elliptic to subrotund, margins often somewhat revolute, dull yellow-orange to almost red, outside of lobes and tube puberulous with somewhat retrorse hairs up to 0.25 mm long, minutely glandular as well, upper surface of lobes with tiny white clavate hairs forming a star-shaped pattern, inside of tube glabrous in upper half, minutely glandular-puberulous below point of insertion of posticous stamens. Stamens 4, anticous anthers 0.6-1 mm long, included, posticous anthers 1.3-2 mm long, very deeply included, posticous filaments bearded with clavate hairs. Stigma 0.6-1.5 mm long, often ± bifid, deeply included. Style 0.7-1.8 mm long. Ovary c. 1.5 x 0.8 mm. Capsules c. 5-6 x 3-3.5 mm, minutely glandular-puberulous all over. Seeds c. 0.8 x 0.5 mm, pallid. All specimens were in both flower and fruit between January and April.