Stevia caracasana Dc.

Species

Angiosperms > Asterales > Asteraceae > Stevia

Characteristics

Unbranched or sparingly branched rhizomatous perennial herbs; stems often brownish or purple, terete, slightly striate, densely puberulous. Leaves opposite; blades ovate, 3-10-cm long and 2-5 cm wide, the base cuneate or rarely sub-truncate, usually abruptly decurrent onto petiole, the margins serrate to serrulate, the apex usually short-acute to obtuse, the surfaces with glandular punctations, the upper surface glabrous to sparsely short-pilose, the lower surface sparsely puberulous to pilose along veins, glabrous or scarcely puberulous on areoles, the veins distinctly trinervate near base; petioles 5-10 mm long, winged distally, sometimes indistinct from lamina. Inflorescence usually laxly paniculate, the primary branches opposite, often spreading at more than 450, densely corymbose terminally, densely puberulous to pilose with few to many stipitate glandular hairs, the ultimate branches mostly 0-3 mm long, rarely to 7 mm long; sub-involucral bracts sometimes broadly elliptical to ovate and prominent. Heads ca. 7-10 mm high; involucral bracts mostly narrowly oblong-lanceolate, mostly ca. 6 mm long and 1.2 mm wide, slightly striate, with some glandular punctations, puberulous, with few to many stipitate glandular hairs, the apex usually sharply acute, the margins scarcely scarious; corolla pink or pinkish, 5-6 mm long, hirsute mostly on lobes and limb, with scattered minute glandular punctations, the lobes equal, ca. 1 mm long. Achenes 3.54.0 mm long, short-to long-hispid; pappus a low, serrate crown of united scales 0.1-0.3 mm long, 4 achenes of head often bearing 3 barbellate basally winged awns alternating with scales.
Life form perennial
Growth form herb
Growth support free-standing
Foliage retention -
Sexuality hermaphrodite
Pollination -
Spread -
Mature width (meter) -
Mature height (meter) 0.01 - 0.01
Root system -
Rooting depth (meter) -
Root diameter (meter) -
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Nitrogen fixer -
Photosynthetic pathway -

Environment

Light -
Soil humidity -
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Soil acidity -
Soil nutriment -
Hardiness (USDA) 8-12

Usage

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

Cultivation

Mode -
Germination duration (days) -
Germination temperacture (C°) -
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Distribution

Stevia caracasana world distribution map, present in Costa Rica, Ecuador, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama, El Salvador, and Venezuela (Bolivarian Republic of)

Identifiers

LSID urn:lsid:ipni.org:names:251284-1
WFO ID wfo-0000122917
COL ID 52GSG
BDTFX ID -
INPN ID -
Wikipedia (EN)
Wikipedia (FR)

Synonyms

Stevia hirtiflora Stevia caracasana Stevia elliptica Stevia hirtiflora Stevia elongata var. caracasana