Sciaphila tenella Blume

Erect herb, at the base a little flexuous, rarely branched, (1.5-) 5-24 cm high. Roots filiform, c. 0.1-0.3 mm in CS, sometimes branched, glabrous or with a few hairs. Stem c. (0.3-) 0.5-1.5 mm in CS, glabrous, internodes c. 3-25 mm long. Leaves ovate to oblong, acute to acuminate, 1-3 by 0.7-2.0 (-2.5) mm, amplexicaul or semi-amplexicaul, appressed. Raceme c. 1-16 cm long, with c. 5-50 flowers, flowers more or less all around. Bracts oblong-ovate to oblong, acute, c. 1-2 (-3) by c. 0.3-0.9 mm, mostly appressed to the pedicel, often the top a bit patent, rarely patent to the pedicel at 20-30°. Pedicels c. 2-7 (-8-15) mm long and c. 0.10-0.35 mm in CS, patent at (30-) 50-90°, straight or recurved for a smaller part to halfway. ♂ Flowers: perianth segments 6, all bearded at the top and completely reflexed, 3 larger segments alternating with 3 smaller, the larger ones long-triangular, acute, c. 0.6-1.5 (-1.8) by 0.2-0.4 (-0.6) mm; the smaller ones triangular, acute, 0.5-1.1 (-1.5) by c. 0.2-0.6 mm. Stamens 6, c. 0.2-0.3 mm, filaments c. 0.1 mm long, connate at the base; anthers 3-lobed. — Bisexual flowers c. 1-3 mm in size; perianth like in the male flower, but larger segments c. 1.1-2 by c. 0.3-0.7 mm; smaller segments 0.8-1.6 by 0.3-0.6 mm. Stamens 3-6, probably always 6, but easily broken off; filaments long; anthers (2-) 3-lobed, c. 0.2-0.3 mm. Carpels c. 15-50, obovoid, c. 0.2-0.5 mm long when young, the upper half with tubercles; style inserted at the base, more or less as long as the carpel, the apex with hairs and papillae.

(Solitary) plant, in shade of dense (sometimes somewhat disturbed) rain-forest, often on hillsides, on clay, chalk or porous nickel-rich soil, sometimes ultra-basic soil, at various altitudes between 15 and 2250 m. Fl. May-Feb.