Psychotria serpens L.

Species

Angiosperms > Gentianales > Rubiaceae > Psychotria

Characteristics

Climbing or creeping vines or lianas, to 6 m or more, rather fleshy, juvenile stems appressed to substrate with adventitious roots, reproductive stems spreading at apex; stems glabrous. Petiole 1-10 mm, glabrous; leaf blade drying papery to leathery, pale green, dark reddish green, reddish brown, or dark brown, often paler below, ovate or obovate on juvenile stems and elliptic, elliptic-oblong, lanceolate, oblanceolate, or obovate-oblong on reproductive stems, 0.7-9 × 0.5-3.8 cm, glabrous, base acute to obtuse, margins plane or sometimes thinly revolute, apex acute, obtuse, or sharply acuminate; secondary veins not visible or 3-10 pairs, not forming a submarginal vein, without domatia; stipules caducous, triangular to ovate, interpetiolar or shortly united around stem, 2-3 mm, glabrous, acute to rounded. Inflorescences terminal, cymose, glabrous to puberulent, few to many flowered, branched for 3-5 orders, pedunculate; peduncle 0.5-3 cm; branched portion corymbiform, 1-5 × 1-5.5(-10) cm; bracts subtending secondary axes 1-2 mm and triangular or often leaflike and 3-6 mm, those subtending pedicels triangular, 0.2-1.5 mm; pedicels 0.5-1.5 mm. Flowers pedicellate. Calyx glabrous to puberulent; hypanthium portion obconic, 0.8-1 mm; limb flared, 0.5-1 mm, partially lobed; lobes triangular, ca. 0.5 mm. Corolla white, funnelform, outside glabrous to usually puberulent; tube 1.5-3 mm, in throat densely villous; lobes ligulate-oblong, 1.5-2.5 mm. Drupes white, subglobose or ellipsoid, 4-7 × 2.5-6 mm, with pedicels to 5 mm; pyrenes shallowly 4-or 5-ribbed. Fl. Apr-Jun, fr. year-round.
Life form perennial
Growth form -
Growth support climber
Foliage retention deciduous
Sexuality hermaphrodite
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Root system adventitious-root creeping-root
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Blooming months
JanFebMar
AprMayJun
JulAugSep
OctNovDec
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Nitrogen fixer -
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Environment

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Hardiness (USDA) 8-12

Usage

Uses medicinal
Edible -
Therapeutic use -
Human toxicity -
Animal toxicity -

Cultivation

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Images

Leaf

Psychotria serpens leaf picture by 栢輝 王 (cc-by-sa)
Psychotria serpens leaf picture by 栢輝 王 (cc-by-sa)
Psychotria serpens leaf picture by 栢輝 王 (cc-by-sa)

Distribution

Psychotria serpens world distribution map, present in China, Japan, Lao People's Democratic Republic, Thailand, Taiwan, Province of China, and Viet Nam

Identifiers

LSID urn:lsid:ipni.org:names:763361-1
WFO ID wfo-0000287559
COL ID 4PQH5
BDTFX ID -
INPN ID -
Wikipedia (EN)
Wikipedia (FR)

Synonyms

Grumilea serpens Uragoga serpens Psychotria serpens var. latifolia Psychotria scandens Psychotria serpens