Gesneria fruticosa (L.) Kuntze

Gesneria fruticosa (Linnaeus) O. Kuntze

Gesneria fruticosa (Linnaeus) O. Kuntze, Rev. Gen. 2:473, 1891.—Urb., Symb. Ant. 2:374, 1901; 8:646, 1921.

Craniolaria fruticosa Linnaeus, Sp. Pl. ed. 1, 2:618, 1753.—Plum., Pl. Am. 128, pl. 133: fig. 2, 1757.

Martynia fruticosa (Linnaeus) Gloxin, Obs. Bot. 15, 1785.

Gesneria flmbriata Lamarck, Encyl. Meth. Bot. 2:703, April 1788 [nom. superfl.].

Gesneria craniolaria Swartz, Prodr. 89, July 1788.—Sw., Fl. Ind. Occid. 2:1015, 1800 (“Gesnera”).—Spreng., Syst. Veg. ed. 16, 2:839, 1825 [nom. superfl.].

Conradia craniolaria (Swartz) Martius, Nov. Gen. & Sp. 3:38, 1829 & 3:191, 1832.—G. Don, Gen. Syst. 4:650, 1838.—A. P. de Candolle, Prodr. 7:525, 1839.

Pentarhaphia craniolaria (Swartz) Decaisne, Ann. Sci. Nat. Bot. ser. 3, 6:99, 1846—Walp., Repert. Bot. Syst. 6:735, 1847.—Griseb., Fl. Brit. W. Ind. 460, 1862—Hanst., Linnaea 34:303, 1865.

Codonoraphia craniolaria (Swartz) Ørsted, Cent. Gesn. 68, 1858.

Shrubs: stems woody to within 7 cm of the apex, to 2 m tall, erect, 2.5 cm in diameter near the base; bark reddish-brown or gray, rugose, pilose with colorless articulate trichomes to glabrescent; branches ca 5 mm in diameter, green, pilose, internodes 5 mm long, leaf scars enlarged.

Leaves alternate, or rarely opposite and decussate: petioles subsulcate or flattened, 2–6 mm long, 3–4 mm wide, green, pilose with red or colorless articulate hairs to glabrescent; blades elliptic to narrowly obtrullate, lobulate above, resembling leaves of Quercus, 11.6—22.5 cm long, 3.1–7.5 cm wide, membranous to subcoriaceous, base cuneate to acute, margin dentate to serrate, apex acute to acuminate, adaxial surface dark green, sparsely pilose to glabrescent, abaxial surface lighter green, pilose to glabrescent on the prominent veins.

Inflorescences 1-flowered, from the axils of usually reduced leaves: peduncles terete, 6.5–21.5 cm long, 1–2 mm in diameter, green or reddish, villous; bracts usually four, linear, 0.5–1.5 cm long, 1–2 mm wide, green, pilose; pedicels terete, 2–5 cm long, 2 mm in diameter, green or reddish; floral tube turbinate, 5–7 mm long, 5–7 mm in diameter at apex, green to red, pilose, strongly ribbed; calyx lobes 5, erect, connate for about 1 mm at the base, each lobe lanceolate, 1.1–2.5 cm long, to 6 mm wide at the base, apex acute to acuminate, outside surface green to red, pilose with erect hairs, shorter toward the entire margin, inside surface green to red, puberulent to pilose with appressed glandular and nonglandular hairs, veins not prominent; corolla broadly campanulate, tube 1.3–2.4 cm long, 6–9 mm wide at the base, broadening to 1.8 cm wide at the mouth, outside pilose, inside lighter green with purple maculae which are more dense toward the mouth, limb 5-lobed, margins fimbriate, fimbria to 7 mm long, ciliate with glandular trichomes, each lobe erect, broadly ovate, upper lobes ca 7 mm long, 1.1 mm wide, connate for 5 mm, lateral and basal lobes 5–6 mm long, 4–5 mm wide; stamens 4, adnate for only 1 mm at the base of the corolla tube, not exserted beyond corolla mouth, filaments linear from a broad base, slightly geniculate, 1.5–3.0 cm long, 1–2 mm in diameter, green, densely pilose at base, glabrescent toward the apex, anthers ovate, 3–4 mm long, 2–3 mm wide, reddish abaxially, glabrous, coherent in two pairs at their apices, pollen grains isopolar, with a nearly circular amb, tricolpate, colpi 14 μm long, 0.5 μm wide, apocolpia rounded to truncate, prolate, size small (17 μm

long at the polar axis, 9 μm wide at the equatorial axis), sexine with lumina heterobrochate, 0.1 μm across, muri 3 μm across, verrucose, warts about 1 μm across and 1 μm apart; ovary inferior, disc a 5-lobed ring, ca 7 mm long, 6 mm wide, 2 mm thick, yellow, puberulent, style linear, curved, to 3.3 cm long, 1–2 mm in diameter, green to white, reddish toward the apex, pubescent, stigma stomatomorphic, 2–4 mm wide, papillate.

Capsule turbinate, 8–11 mm long, 8–9 mm wide, reddish to gray-brown, pilose to glabrescent, costae 10, prominent; seeds fusiform, about 1.5 mm long, tawny to red.

TYPE.—Description of Craniolaria fruticosa Linnaeus based on Plumier description (Nov. Pl. Am. Gen. 27, 1703) and an unpublished Aubriet copy of Plumier drawing (Figure 75b).

DISTRIBUTION AND ECOLOGY.—Gesneria fruticosa grows in mesic limestone forests in south-central Dominican Republic and on the southern peninsula of Haiti at elevations from 500–1500 m (Figure 50). This species has been collected in flower in nearly every month. In the greenhouse a single inflorescence continued to produce flowers for nearly a year. Pollination may be facilitated by visits of the largest flower-feeding bat on Hispaniola, Brachyphylla pumila.

SPECIMENS EXAMINED.—HAITI. DÉPARTEMENT DU SUD: Massif de la Hotte, eastern group, Morne Rouge, at Chapelle Mont Carmel, ca 600 m, 8 November 1924, E. Ekman H2429 (EHH, IJ, S 2 sheets, US); along trail down to Bras-Sec [Bois-Sec] and along banks of dry river between Leon and Fond Conchon about 15 miles SE of Jérémie, 1100 ft, 24 July 1970, L. Skog, T. Talpey & D. Pfister 1615 (BH, E, F, NY, S, U, US); Morne de la Hotte in decliv. sept.-orient in mont, sylvatic., ca 800 m, 11 June 1917, E. Ekman H198 (C, K, S). DÉPARTEMENT DE L’OUEST: Massif de la Selle, Etang du Jonc, in steep limestone rocks at Rivière Froide, ca 700 m, 19 September 1924, E. Ekman H1973 (S). DOMINICAN REPUBLIC. PROVINCE OF LA VEGA: Sierra de Ocoa, San José de Ocoa, Bejucal, slope of Loma de los Palos Mojados, ca 1500 m, 8 March 1929, E. Ekman H11827 (S); Cordillera Central, Slope of Loma La Campana, ca 800 m, 11 February 1929, E. Ekman H11526 (S). PROVINCE OF SAN CRISTÓBAL: Cordillera Central, San Cristóbal, near Cambita, in Cuchilla de los Mameyes, ca 500 m, 27 January 1929, E. Ekman H11334 (S); La Cabirma, San Cristóbal, 10 April 1968, E. Marcano & T. Talpey 5435 (NY, RDJ, US); La Cabirma de la Loma, north of San Cristóbal about 25 km, 550 m, 19 March 1967, T. Talpey 71 (BH); La Cabirma de la Loma, 2000 ft, 9 April 1968, T. Talpey 94 (BH); Cabirma de la Loma, 750 m, 25 March 1972, Alain Liogier 18513 (NY, US). LOCALITY UNKNOWN: India occid.: Hispaniola, no date, O. Swartz sn (BM, G-DC, LD, M, S Figure 75a, UPS). CULTIVATED: Cornell University, G-1035, 3 November 1970, L. Skog 1737 (BH), 11 May 1972, L. Skog 1829 (BH).