Xia Nianhe bamboo (Yersinochloa nianheana), a rare bamboo species from Voi Mountain, southern Vietnam

NEWS - Xia Nianhe bamboo (Yersinochloa nianheana) from southern Vietnam, grows at an elevation of 1400-1500 meters on Voi Mountain, Duc Trong District, Lam Dong Province, Vietnam. Researchers added a new species to Yersinochloa H.N.Nguyen & V.T.Tran 2016, a very rare genus.

Yersinochloa consists of Y. dalatensis H.N.Nguyen & V.T.Tran and Y. nghiana V.T.Tran & T.V.Tran which are narrowly distributed in degraded natural forests in the highlands of southern Vietnam. This genus is distinguished from other related genera of Bambusinae by pseudo-spikelets with only one perfect floret, unnotched palea and anther tips with small spines.

Researchers conducted a bamboo survey on Voi Mountain in December 2023 and found several populations of climbing bamboos growing sparsely in a valley. This population has only one perfect floret without terminal remnant flower, palea is not notched and the anther tip has small spines.

The shape, branch structure and inflorescence of the collected specimens are similar to Yersinochloa. However, the combination of leaf-stem structure and inflorescence, along with other features are not found in other bamboo species.

Y. nianheana differs from Y. dalatensis by having thick and swollen kneecaps at the culm nodes (vs. without thick and swollen kneecaps), erect culm leaf blades (vs. folded) and prominent auricles (vs. absent).

Y. nianheana differs from Y. nghiana in having flat culm leaf blades at the base (vs. swollen at the base), palea with white cilia at the top (vs. glabrous), purple lodicules at the top half, not bifurcated at the base (vs. purple, bifurcated at the base) and 2-keeled buds (vs. 1-keeled buds).

The bamboo grows in degraded natural forest and was found flowering in December 2023. The new species is named in honor of Prof. Xia Nianhe for his contributions to bamboo research. The specimen is only known from a single population and no more than 500 mature clumps.

Original research

Van Duy N, Vinh TT, Cong VK, Hoi QV, Tham DT, Hang NTT, Khiem DV, Truong HT, Nghia NH, Minh NTA, Tien TV (2024). Yersinochloa nianheana (Poaceae, Bambusoideae), a new species from southern Vietnam. PhytoKeys 247: 67-73, DOI:10.3897/phytokeys.247.132975

Dlium theDlium

Bugang (Clerodendrum calamitosum)

Bugang ( Clerodendrum calamitosum ) is a species of plant in the Lamiaceae family. It is an erect shrub, growing up to 1 meter tall, with cylindrical, green stems and white hairs. The leaves are opposite. The leaf blade is oval, wavy, with a central main vein with numerous pinnate minor veins, and serrated margins. The leaves are up to 9 cm long and 7 cm wide. The petiole is up to 2 cm long. The flowers are star-shaped, white, up to 3 cm in diameter and up to 6 cm in total length. The fruit is round, dark green, turning black when ripe. TAXON Kingdom: Plantae Phylum: Tracheophyta Subphylum: Angiospermae Class: Magnoliopsida Order: Lamiales Family: Lamiaceae Subfamily: Ajugoideae Genus: Clerodendrum L. in Sp. Pl.: 637 (1753) Species: Clerodendrum calamitosum L. in Mant. Pl. 1: 90 (1767) HETEROTYPIC SYNONYMS Clerodendrum fastigiatum (W.Hunter ex Ridl.) H.J.Lam in Verben. Malay. Archip.: 317 (1919) Volkameria alternifolia Burm.f. in Fl. Indica: 137 (1768) Volkameria fastigiata W.Hunter...

Plumeria rubra and Plumeria obtusa, the differences

SPECIES HEAD TO HEAD - The genus frangipani trees ( Plumeria Tourn. ex L.) has only 18 officially recorded species and two very similar species, frangipani ( Plumeria rubra L.) and white frangipani ( Plumeria obtusa L.). Both have the same habitus, flowers and fruits and are difficult to distinguish. The leaves of both species have slightly different shapes. Therefore, the leaves are very important to distinguish the two species, especially the shape of the tip. P. rubra has simple, lanceolate leaves with acute tips. P. obtusa has simple, elliptic leaves with rounded tips. By Aryo Bandoro Founder of Dlium.com . You can follow him on X: @Abandoro . Read more: Plumeria rubra Plumeria obtusa

Durian (Durio zibethinus)

Durian ( Durio zibethinus ) is a species of tropical plant in Malvaceae, an annual tree, everlasting green but there are certain times to grow new leaves after the fruiting period is over, popularly called "king of fruit" and considered a controversial fruit where many people like, but some others are even fed up with the scent. D. zibethinus grows to 25-50 m, reddish brown bark and irregular peeling, leafy and stretched canopy. The leaves are oval shaped to lanceolate, 10-15x3-4.5 cm, sitting alternately, stemmed, taper or blunt base and taper-pointed sloping, bright green upper side, the lower side covered with silver or golden scales. Flowers and fruit Flowers appear directly on the trunk or old branches at the proximal, clustered in panicles containing 3-10 florets or flat-shaped florets. Rounded flower buds, 2 cm in diameter and long stem. Tubular petals, 3 cm long, additional petals split into 2-3 round lobes. Crown shaped spatula with a length of 2 times the ...

Dlium