Medinilla rubicunda (Jack) Blume

Species

Angiosperms > Myrtales > Melastomataceae > Medinilla

Characteristics

Shrubs 0.5-5 m tall, sometimes epiphytic, many-branched. Stems light brown or tan, slightly succulent, obtusely 4-angled, later terete, scattered lenticellate, glabrous; bark corky, wrinkled. Petiole 0.5-2.5 cm, glabrous; leaf blade elliptic to lanceolate, 5-14 × 2.5-6.5 cm, stiffly papery to subleathery, both surfaces glabrous, abaxially sometimes tuberculate, adaxially scrobiculate, secondary veins 1 or 2 on each side of midvein, if secondary veins 2-paired then apical pair originating ca. 5 mm for leaf blade base, base broadly cuneate to subround, margin entire, apex abruptly acuminate. Inflorescences axillary in axils of leaves or at leaf scars on older branches, cymose, (1-)3-5-flowered; peduncle 4-5 mm, puberulous. Pedicel 2-5 mm, puberulous; bracts 2 at base of each pedicel, acutely triangular, ca. 1 mm. Hypanthium funnel-shaped, 5-6.5 mm, puberulous. Calyx lobes inconspicuous, forming an undulate ring. Petals pink, rhomboid-obovate, 1-1.5 × 0.6-0.8 cm, oblique, glabrous, apex rounded to truncate. Stamens equal, 1-1.4 cm; anthers lanceolate, curved; connective decurrent, forming a short spur, adaxially 2-tuberculate. Ovary ovoid, glabrous, margin membranous, apex truncate. Berry ovoid to urceolate because of persistent, short, free calyx margin, 9-11 × 7-8 mm. Seeds obovate, glabrous. Fl. Aug-Sep, fr. Oct-Mar.
More
A shrub or small tree. It can grow 5 m tall. It can grow attached to other plants. It has many branches. The stems are light brown and slightly succulent. They are 4 angled. The bark is corky and wrinkled. The leaves are narrowly oval and 5-14 cm long by 3-7 cm wide. They can be lumpy underneath. There are 3-5 flowers in a group usually in the axils of leaves. The petals are pink. The fruit is a berry and it can be oval or urn shaped. It is 9-11 mm long by 7-8 mm wide.
Life form -
Growth form shrub
Growth support epiphyte
Foliage retention deciduous
Sexuality hermaphrodite
Pollination -
Spread -
Mature width (meter) -
Mature height (meter) 2.75 - 5.0
Root system -
Rooting depth (meter) -
Root diameter (meter) -
Flower color
Blooming months
JanFebMar
AprMayJun
JulAugSep
OctNovDec
Fruit color -
Fruiting months
JanFebMar
AprMayJun
JulAugSep
OctNovDec
Nitrogen fixer -
Photosynthetic pathway -

Environment

A tropical plant. It grows in mixed forests and along river banks between 800-1,800 m above sea level in southern China. In Yunnan.
Light -
Soil humidity -
Soil texture 7-8
Soil acidity -
Soil nutriment -
Hardiness (USDA) 8-12

Usage

The leaves are eaten cooked.
Uses material
Edible fruits leaves
Therapeutic use -
Human toxicity -
Animal toxicity -

Cultivation

Mode -
Germination duration (days) -
Germination temperacture (C°) -
Germination luminosity -
Germination treatment -
Minimum temperature (C°) -
Optimum temperature (C°) -
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Vigor -
Productivity -

Distribution

Medinilla rubicunda world distribution map, present in Bhutan, China, India, Myanmar, Nepal, and Thailand

Identifiers

LSID urn:lsid:ipni.org:names:570429-1
WFO ID wfo-0001083237
COL ID 6R8CW
BDTFX ID -
INPN ID -
Wikipedia (EN)
Wikipedia (FR)

Synonyms

Melastoma erythrophyllum Medinilla erythrophylla Medinilla yunnanensis Medinilla hainanensis Medinilla rubicunda Medinilla fuligineo-glandulifera Melastoma rubicundum Medinilla emarginata Medinilla rubicunda var. tibetica