Salvia sonchifolia C. Y. Wu

Plants perennial. Stems erect, ca. 30 cm, densely retrorse pubescent. Leaves mostly basal; stem leaves 1-paired; petiole 4-6.5 cm, puberulent; leaf blade oblong, 4-6.5 × 1.5-3 cm, papery, adaxially glabrous, abaxially glabrous or puberulent on veins, base cuneate or subtruncate, margin undulate or obscurely crenate, apex rounded. Inflorescences densely puberulent; verticillasters 2-flowered, in terminal racemes 4.5-7 cm; bracts shorter than pedicels. Pedicel 3-6 mm. Calyx campanulate, 8-8.5 mm, finely pilose along veins, finely pubescent, sparsely yellowish glandular, margin ciliolate, 2-lipped to ca. 1/3 its length; upper lip tinged dark purple, semicircular, ca. 2.5 × 5.5 mm, apex 3-mucronate; lower lip purplish, longer than upper, strongly 2-toothed. Corolla purple, to 3.5 cm, pubescent, indistinctly pilose annulate inside; upper lip subcircular, ca. 6 mm wide; lower lip longer than upper, ovate, ca. 7 × 9 mm; middle lobe obcordate, apex emarginate, margin undulate; lateral lobes ovate. Filaments ca. 3 mm; connectives ca. 1.5 mm, arms subequal, anther cells subequal. Fl. Apr-May.

Yunnan.

* Wet forest humus on limestone mountains; 1300-1500 m.

Salvia sonchifolia is a perennial plant that is native to Yunnan province in China, found growing in damp forest humus on limestone mountains at 1,300 to 1,500 m (4,300 to 4,900 ft) elevation. S. sonchifolia grows on erect stems to 30 cm (12 in) tall, with oblong leaves that are 4 to 6.5 cm (1.6 to 2.6 in) long and 1.5 to 3 cm (0.59 to 1.18 in) wide.

Inflorescences are compact 2-flowered verticillasters in terminal racemes, with a 3.5 cm (1.4 in) purple corolla.