Ceropegia cumingiana
| Ceropegia cumingiana | ||||||||||||
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Ceropegia cumingiana |
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| Ceropegia cumingiana | ||||||||||||
| Decne. |
Ceropegia cumingiana is a species of the subfamily of the silk plant family (Asclepiadoideae). It is the largest (longest) species of the genus Ceropegia . It has a very large distribution area in Southeast Asia and Northern Australia.
description
Vegetative characteristics
Ceropegia cumingiana is a twisting or twining, perennial , herbaceous plant that can grow up to 10 m long. It has white, spindle-shaped, fleshy roots that can be up to 15 cm long (with a diameter of 1 to 3 mm). The milky juice is clear. The shoots are light green and bare and up to 5 mm in diameter.
The thin, soft and opposite leaves are stalked, the petioles measure 2.5 to 4 cm in length and have a diameter of 1 to 2 mm. The leaf blades are egg-shaped, elliptical to lanceolate and at the end, depending on the leaf shape, more or less pointed, 2 to 13 cm long and 1.5 to 7 cm wide. The base is rounded or heart-shaped. Two to four colleters (small glands) sit on the top of the midrib near the transition to the stalk. The stems have a longitudinal groove on the top.
Inflorescence and flowers
The stalked, umbel-like inflorescences form near the vegetation cone of a shoot in the nodes . They are single to multiple flowered (up to 20 flowers), the stem is up to 80 mm long and 1 mm thick. The flower stalks are 15 to 22 mm long and 1.5 mm in diameter. They are bald, light green, and spotted purple.
The somewhat fleshy sepals are about 3 to 3.5 mm long and 1 mm wide. The corollas are 1.5 to 3 cm high, depending on the clone. The petals are fused to about 2/3 to 3/4 of their length to form an outside bare corolla tube. This is 12 to 20 mm long and has a diameter of 3 to 6 mm. The base of the corolla tube ("kettle") is slightly inflated and has a diameter of 3 to 6 mm in the lower part. The straight to curved corolla tube widens like a funnel towards the upper end, where it reaches a width of 8 to 15 mm. It is cream-colored around the lower part, then initially vertical purple-colored stripes form, which quickly become wider; the funnel-shaped upper part is altogether purple or reddish. The petals are 10 to 12 mm long and 6 to 7 mm wide. They are connected to each other at the tips. The two halves of the lobes are bent outwards along the central axis. The corolla lobes are brownish-purple in the lower part (this area can also be missing), then follows a horizontally running whitish-cream-colored stripe of different widths, often with a purple tint. This often turns into a very narrow yellowish area, the upper part is red-brown. The secondary crown is 3.5 to 4 mm high with a diameter of 3.5 to 5 mm. The interstaminal (or outer) corolla lobes are pocket-shaped, upright, and measure 2.5 mm in length and 3.5 mm in width. They are cut in the middle at the top. The inside is covered with white and auburn hair. The staminal (or inner) minor corolla lobes are 1.5 to 2 mm long, stand upright and have a thickness of 0.5 mm.
The anthers are sessile and about 1 mm wide and equally high. There are two Polinia per stamen. The stylus head is flat at the top.
Fruits and seeds
The follicles are usually formed in pairs (from one flower), but can also stand individually. The single fruit is long spindle-shaped, the length is 16 to 26 mm, the diameter (or the thickness) 4 to 5 mm. The seeds are 10 to 12 mm long with a thickened edge. The white hairs are 25 to 40 mm long.
Similar species
Ceropegia cumingia is close to Ceropegia lucida Wall. related. Both species were H. Huber in the Section Hylopegia H.Huber asked. In both species, the vegetative parts of the plant are completely bare. However, they have this characteristic in common with the species of the Janthina section ( Ceropegia thwaitesii Hook. , Ceropegia elegans Wall. And Ceropegia madagascariensis Decne. ). These three types differ, however, in that they have a much less inflated base ("kettle"). Ceropegia lucida is distinguished by the differently shaped petal tips; strongly wedge-shaped pointed and spatulate at the upper end, on the other hand, oblong-ovoid in Ceropegia cumingiana .
Geographical distribution and ecology
The species has a very large distribution area that extends from the Philippines and Vietnam in the north via Malaysia , Borneo , Indonesia and Timor to Papua New Guinea and northern Australia . It grows in tropical rainforests from sea level to 550 m.
Use by humans
The roots of the plant are eaten by the Aborigines in Queensland, Australia. The roots were also eaten in New Guinea, but also used for medicinal purposes.
Systematics and taxonomy
The species was scientifically described for the first time by Joseph Decaisne in 1844. It was first pictured by William Jackson Hooker in 1848. Ceropegia cumingiana is very variable across its large distribution area, especially in its flower shape and color. Accordingly, at least two subspecies and two forms were previously distinguished. The subspecies are no longer recognized today and have been reunited into one species. According to Bruyn & Forster (1989), the following synonyms also exist:
- Ceropegia horsfieldiena Miq. (= Ceropegia cumingiana subsp. Horsfieldiana (Miq.) H. Huber )
- Ceropegia curviflora Haask.
- Ceropegia obtusiloba Fawcett in Forbes
- Ceropegia perforata N.E.Br.
- Ceropegia papuana Schltr.
- Ceropegia borneensis Merr.
- Ceropegia merrillii Scltr.
supporting documents
literature
- Peter Vincent Bruyns, Paul Irwin Forster: Ceropegia cumingiana Decne (Asclepiadaceae). In: Austrobaileya. Volume 3, No. 1, 1989, pp. 7-11.
- Paul Irwin Forster: Asclepiad profile: 1. Ceropegia cumingiana Decne. In: Asklepios. Volume 56, 1987, pp. 19-23.
Individual evidence
- ↑ Homepage of Alexander Lang ( Memento of the original from April 2, 2007 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and not yet checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ^ Joseph Decaisne: Ceropegia cumingiana. In: Alphonse de Candolle: Prodromus systematis naturalis regni vegetabilis auctore. 8. Sistens corolliflorarum ordines XIII. Paris, Masson & Soc. 1844, p. 633 (online at Botanicus.org) .
- ↑ William Jackson Hooker: Ceropegia Cumingiana . In: Curtis's Botanical Magazine. Volume 74, 1848, plate 4349 + 2 unnumbered pages (online at Botanicus.org) .
- ^ Herbert FJ Huber: Revision of the genus Ceropegia. In: Memórias da Sociedade Broteriana. Volume 12, Coimbra, 1957, pp. 56-58 (summary description of Ceropegia cumingiana ).
