Scaevola sericea Vahl

Species

Angiosperms > Asterales > Goodeniaceae > Scaevola

Characteristics

Erect or spreading shrub, sometimes a small tree (up to 7 m). Branchlets 1/2-1 cm thick, terete, usually glabrous, but the leaf-axils provided with stiff tufts of white hairs. Leaves spirally arranged, the majority crowded at the ends of the branches, sessile, spathulate to obovate, 39 by 13 cm, herbaceous to thin-fleshy, glabrous (rarely short-tomentose on both sides), narrowed towards the base, margin entire or sinuate to dentate, apex blunt to rounded. Inflorescences laxly branched, c. 4 cm long, few-flowered, glabrous (to densely woolly pubescent); peduncle c. 1 cm long. Bracts persistent, narrowly triangular, up to 3 mm long, white-pilose in the axils. Flowers 2-2.5 cm long, glabrous or (specially the corolla) more or less densely appressed-pubescent, scentless. Calyx-lobes linear to narrowly elliptic, (1½-)2½-5(-15) by 0.5(-5) mm, blunt, erect to faintly recurved. Corolla pale yellow, at first lilac-veined, white inside; tube inside densely pubescent, membranous margins of the lobes fimbriate towards the base. Style faintly pubescent at the base, sometimes in addition with some scattered long hairs. Drupe globular, faintly 2-lobed when dry, c. 1-1.5 cm in diam., with 4 faint ribs on every lobe, fleshy, (sub)glabrous, pellucid-white when ripe; stone 8 by 6 mm, rugose, septum distinctly prominent.
More
Shrub or small tree, 2–3(–4) m. tall.. Stem glabrous, fleshy, bearing persistent leaf-scars.. Leaf-axils (and bract-axils) with prominent tufts of white silky hairs; leaves sessile, spathulate or obovate to narrowly obovate, 6–25 cm. long, 3–10 cm. broad, entire or distally faintly crenate, obtuse, narrowed gradually below the middle, abruptly broader at the base which partially clasps the stem, glabrous, thinly fleshy, light green with a tendency to turn blue when dried; lateral veins faint, all widely diverging, up to 25 pairs.. Inflorescences axillary, cymose, 5–10 cm. long, 1–13-flowered, overtopped by the leaves, with many paired pubescent bracts 2–3 mm. long.. Calyx-tube turbinate; teeth 3–6 mm. long, erect, persisting and sometimes lengthening on the fruit.. Corolla blue to white, sometimes with mauve markings; tube 8–17 mm. long, 3 mm. broad; lobes elliptical, 8–13 mm. long, 4–5 mm. broad, the central portion thicker than the crenulate marginal zone.. Ovary 2-locular; style simple.. Fruit whitish, subglobose, 8–15 mm. long, slightly constricted medially, faintly 10-ribbed, 2-seeded. The corky fruits float in sea water and remain viable after prolonged immersion.. Fig. 1/1–9.
Arbuste souvent buissonnant, pouvant atteindre 3-4 m de hauteur, généralement glabre, sauf aux aisselles des feuilles. Feuilles plus ou moins charnues, sessiles, spatulées-obovées, grossièrement dentées vers l’extrémité, plutôt groupées vers le sommet des rameaux, longues de 6-10 cm en moyenne et larges de 3-5 cm, mais pouvant atteindre 18-20 x 7-8 cm; aisselles garnies de soies blanches tardivement caduques. Fleurs en cymes bipares régulières, 3-4 fois ramifiées, longues de 2-5 cm; lobes du calice linéaires-triangulaires, longues de 2-5 mm ou ovées; corolles jaune très pâle ou blanche, veinée de mauve pâle, longue de 2-2.5 cm, glabre à l’extérieur, densément pubescente à l’intérieur du tube; lobes longs de 4-5 mm; style faiblement pubescent à la base; ovaire infère. Fruit drupacé de 1-1.5 cm de diamètre, légèrement côtelé sur le frais, fortement sur le sec, blanc-nacré à maturité; noyau long de 6-8 mm, rugueux, contenant 2 graines. Fl., fr. toute l’annee.
Life form perennial
Growth form shrub
Growth support -
Foliage retention -
Sexuality hermaphrodite
Pollination -
Spread -
Mature width (meter) -
Mature height (meter) 3.0
Root system -
Rooting depth (meter) 0.5
Root diameter (meter) -
Flower color -
Blooming months -
Fruit color
Fruiting months -
Nitrogen fixer -
Photosynthetic pathway -

Environment

Light 5-5
Soil humidity 2-2
Soil texture -
Soil acidity 3-8
Soil nutriment -
Hardiness (USDA) 9-12

Usage

Uses. Several parts of this plant are used in native medicine (see HEYNE, I.c.). The wood of the basal part is rather hard, but the pieces are small; as it is resistent against sea-water, it is used for making nails for canoes. The thick, soft pith of the young twigs is used in microscopical technique, replacing elder-pith. As this pith can easily be cut and painted, people (specially in the Moluccas) make flowers, small birds, and fruits etc. from it.
Uses animal food environmental use food material medicinal social use wood
Edible -
Therapeutic use Dermatological Aid (bark), Eye diseases (fruit), Digestive system diseases (leaf), Flatulence (leaf), Dermatological Aid (root), Dysentery (root), Headache (unspecified), Antidote (unspecified), Beriberi (unspecified), Diarrhea (unspecified), Diuretic (unspecified), Dysentery (unspecified), Leg (unspecified), Swelling (unspecified), Syphilis (unspecified), Tachycardia (unspecified), Ophthalmia (unspecified), Elephantiasis (unspecified), Fracture (unspecified), Fumitory (unspecified), Tumor (unspecified), Ague (unspecified), Conjunctivitis (unspecified), Dropsy (unspecified), Dyspepsia (unspecified), Eye (unspecified), Stomach (unspecified)
Human toxicity -
Animal toxicity -

Cultivation

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

Images

Fruit

Scaevola sericea fruit picture by James Rush (cc-by-sa)
Scaevola sericea fruit picture by James Rush (cc-by-sa)

Distribution

Scaevola sericea world distribution map, present in American Samoa, French Southern Territories, Antigua and Barbuda, Australia, Bahamas, China, Cook Islands, Cayman Islands, Fiji, Micronesia (Federated States of), Guam, Indonesia, India, Kenya, Kiribati, Sri Lanka, Madagascar, Maldives, Marshall Islands, Myanmar, Northern Mariana Islands, Mauritius, Malaysia, Mayotte, Niue, Nauru, Pakistan, Pitcairn, Philippines, Palau, Papua New Guinea, Puerto Rico, Réunion, Singapore, Solomon Islands, Thailand, Tokelau, Tonga, Tuvalu, Taiwan, Province of China, Tanzania, United Republic of, United States Minor Outlying Islands, United States of America, Viet Nam, Vanuatu, Wallis and Futuna, Samoa, and South Africa

Identifiers

LSID urn:lsid:ipni.org:names:30200356-2
WFO ID wfo-0001065171
COL ID 6Y4HY
BDTFX ID -
INPN ID 453035
Wikipedia (EN) Link
Wikipedia (FR)

Synonyms

Lobelia piliplena Scaevola frutescens Scaevola billardierei Scaevola bela-modagani Lobelia sericea Scaevola fauriei Scaevola lativaga Lobelia frutescens Scaevola koenigii Scaevola leschenaultii Scaevola plumerioides Scaevola chlorantha Scaevola sericea Scaevola lambertiana Scaevola macrocalyx Scaevola piliplena Lobelia koenigii Scaevola velutina Lobelia sericea var. koenigii