Skip to main content

Bomi torchwort (Phlomoides bomiensis) grows at elevations of 3400-4200 meters in China

NEWS - The researchers report and describe a new species, Phlomoides bomiensis, from Bomi, Xizang, China, and describe Phlomoides longidentata, previously known only from Nepal and Bhutan, from Dingri, Xizang, China. This species often grows to more than 1 meter tall.

Bomi torchwort (Phlomoides bomiensis) grows at elevations of 3400-4200 meters in China

The phylogenetics of both species were analyzed using nine plastid DNA markers (atpB-rbcL, psbA-trnH, rpl16, rpl32-trnL, rps16, trnK, trnL-trnF, trnS-trnG, trnT-trnL) with brown-black trichomes in the upper corolla lip and nested in the same subclade of Clade II.

The flowers of P. bomiensis differ from those of P. nyalamensis by having truncated or slightly notched calyx teeth, posterior filaments with folded appendages at their bases, and petals with distinct petioles. The flowers also differ from P. breviflora in that the corolla is longer than 2 cm and the seeds are oblong.

A perennial herbaceous species with strong roots and a linear tuberous shape. The stem is 0.5-1.8 meters high, subrectangular, strong, the lower part of the stem is glabrous, the upper part with simple trichomes. They grow in forests and forest edges at an elevation of 3400-4200 meters.

Flowers from August to September and fruits from October to November. The specific epithet refers to the name of Bomi County in Xizang Autonomous Region, where the new species was discovered. The Chinese name is cháng bō mì cǎo cāo sū (波密草糙苏).

Phlomoides was first described by Conrad Moench or Konrad Mönch (1744-1805) in Methodus: 403 (1794). This species with 14 synonyms has more than 110 species to date.

Original research

Zhao Y, Chen Y-P, Bai R-Z, Pendry CA, Sukhorukov AP, Xiang C-L (2024) A new species and a new record of Phlomoides (Lamiaceae) from Xizang, China. PhytoKeys 246: 15-26. DOI:10.3897/phytokeys.246.129057

Popular Posts

Screw tree (Helicteres isora)

Screw tree ( Helicteres isora ) is a species of plant in the Malvaceae family. It is a shrub or small tree, up to 8 meters tall. It has gray bark and alternate leaves, up to 22 cm long and 17 cm wide, oval in shape, with serrated edges and hairs. The flowers are red or white and reach a total length of 5.5 cm. The fruit is green when unripe, brown or gray when dry, twisted, spiral-shaped, and pointed at the tip. The seeds are black or brown, shiny, and diagonal, triangular, or rectangular. TAXON Kingdom: Plantae Phylum: Tracheophyta Subphylum: Angiospermae Class: Magnoliopsida Order: Malvales Family: Malvaceae Subfamily: Helicteroideae Tribe: Helictereae Genus: Helicteres Pluk. ex L. in Sp. Pl.: 963 (1753) Species: Helicteres isora L. in Sp. Pl.: 963 (1753) HETEROTYPIC SYNONYMS Helicteres baruensis var. ovata DC. in Prodr. 1: 476 (1824) Helicteres chrysocalyx Miq. ex Mast. in J.D.Hooker, Fl. Brit. India 1: 365 (1874) Helicteres corylifolia Buch.-Ham. ex Dillwyn in Rev. Hortus Malab....

Sausage tree (Kigelia africana)

Sausage Tree ( Kigelia africana ) is a species of tree in the Bignoniaceae family, growing up to 24 meters tall with low, spreading branches. The bark is dark gray to light brown, up to 6 mm thick, scaly, creamy white underside, and the branches are marked with lenticels. The wood is light brown or yellowish. This tree grows at elevations of 0-3000 meters. The leaves are arranged alternately along the stem and are divided into several pairs of minor leaflets and a single minor leaflet at the tip. Each leaflet is up to 50 cm long and has 3-6 pairs of opposite minor leaflets. The minor leaflets are oval to narrow and pointed, 7-20 cm long and 4-12 cm wide. The margins are smooth, sometimes slightly serrated. The upper side is glossy green, the underside pale green, smooth or finely hairy. The central vein is sunken on the upper side, with 7-12 pairs of prominent lateral veins visible below. The inflorescences hang from flexible branches up to 7.5 meters long. The flowers are bell-shap...

Breng (Coldenia breng)

Breng ( Coldenia breng ) is a species of plant in the Boraginaceae family. It is a herbaceous plant that grows along the ground, with radial, cylindrical stems, red, multi-branched, alternate, and white-haired. C. breng has alternate leaves along the stem, oval to nearly round, up to 2.5 cm long, up to 1.5 cm wide, and white-haired. This plant grows in floodplains, seasonally inundated riverbanks, and drying rice fields. It thrives in sandy or silty soils and is drought-tolerant. TAXON Kingdom: Plantae Phylum: Tracheophyta Subphylum: Angiospermae Class: Magnoliopsida Order: Boraginales Family: Boraginaceae Subfamily: Cordioideae Genus: Coldenia L. in Sp. Pl.: 125 (1753) Species: Coldenia breng Aryo Bandoro Dlium TheDlium YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@Dlium