Jasminum didymum G. Forst.

Jasminum didymum Forster f

Jasminum didymum Forster f. Prodr., 3, 1786.—F. Brown, Flora, 225, 1935.

This species was reported by Brown from the Marquesas and other islands, but he cited no specimens (nor indeed of the other species of Jasminum he discussed), and I have found none in the herbaria where I have worked. It may be a misidentification. The plant, however, is commonly found in other islands of southeastern Polynesia, and there are many collections from Tahiti, so it might occur in the Marquesas.

The following description is based on specimens from other islands of Polynesia. Liana with glabrous, sprawling, scrambling, or rarely somewhat twining stems, leaves trifoliolate, petioles 1–2 cm long, petiolules 4–15 mm, leaflets usually very broadly ovate or elliptic or oval, up to 9 × 5 cm, obtuse to acuminate, usually with 5 rather strong nerves from just above base, rather plinerved, base rounded to subcordate. Inflorescences loosely thyreoid in axils, occasionally terminal on small branches, minutely puberulent, branches of thyrse dichasioid, the lateral pedicels branched with 2 flowers, central pedicel 3–5 mm, whole thyrse up to 13 × 5 cm, usually much smaller, with up to 4 internodes in main axis; flowers rather small for the genus, calyx campanulate to cylindric, about 3 × 2 mm, truncate except for minute blunt denticulation on margins, corolla salverform, tube about 5–7 mm long, lobes 4–7, suborbicular about 3 mm long, white, very fragrant; calyx in fruit somewhat enlarged and pedicel swollen, obconic; fruits 2, or one of them variously reduced or aborted, globose, 8–10 (−15) mm long, black.

Described from the Society Islands. The Tahitian name, tafifi, means a twining liana, and is also used for other twiners.

Jasminum didymum G. Forster

Jasminum didymum Parkinson, Journ. Voy. 37. 1773 [nomen nudum]—G. Forster, Prod. 3. 1786b.—Endlicher, Ann. Wien Mus. 1:177. 1836.—Guillemin, Ann. Sci. Nat. ser. 2. 7:192. 1837.—Pancher in Cuzent, Iles Soc. Tahiti 235. 1860.—Gray, Proc. Am. Acad. 5:332. 1862c.—Seemann, Fl. Vit. 154. 1866.—Nadeaud, Enum. Pl. Tahiti 55. 1873.—Butteaud, Fl. Tahiti, 57. 1891.—Drake del Castillo, Ill. Fl. Ins. Pac. 7:231. 1892; Fl. Polyn. Franc. 121. 1892.—Hemsley, Journ. Linn. Soc. Bot. 30:184. 1894.—Burkill, Jour. Linn. Soc. Bot. 35:45. 1901.—Cheeseman, Trans. Linn. Soc. 6:286. 1903.—Setchell, Carn. Inst. Dep. Mar. Biol. Bull. 20:60. 1924; Univ. Cal. Pub. Bot. 12:200. 1926.—Henry, Bish. Mus. Bull. 48:61. 1928.—Wilder, Bish. Mus. Bull. 86:87. 1931; Bish. Mus. Bull. 120:39. 1934.—Christophersen, Bish. Mus. Bull. 128:174. 1935.—F.B.H. Brown, Bish. Mus. Bull. 130: 225. 1935.

Jasminum divaricatum R. Brown, Prod. 521. 1810; Labillardière, Sert. Austro-Cal. l:t.27. 1824.

Jasminum azoricum sensu Hooker and Arnott, Bot. Beech. Voy. 66. 1832 [non L., 1753].

Jasminum parviflorum Decaisne, Nouv. Ann. Mus. Par. 3:405. 1834.—Rechinger, Denks. Akad. Wien 85:327. 1910.

Jasminum didymum var. stenophyllum Daeniker, Viert. Nat. Ges. Zur. 78:366. 1933.

DESCRIPTION.—Twining vine to 6 m long. Twigs puberulent or glabrescent. Petioles 1–4 cm long. Leaves trifoliolate. Terminal leaflet of sunleaves ovate, 4–9 × 2.5–5.5 cm, rounded at base, obtuse, occasionally retuse, or acute and aciculate, subcoriaceous, lucid, light yellowish green, prominently reticulate below; lateral leaflets smaller, often asymmetrical; shade leaves chartaceous, usually acute, not prominently veined. Cymes axillary, puberulent or glabrescent, many-flowered. Flowers 1–1.2 cm long, white, fragrant. Calyx tube 1–3 mm long, entire or short (0.3 mm) 4–6-toothed. Corolla tube 8–10 (4–15) mm long, lobes 3–5 (2–8) mm long, obtuse or rounded. Half-berries globose, 1–1.5 cm in diameter, greenish becoming purple-black.

Labillardière (1824, under J. divaricatum) described a narrow-leafleted form from New Caledonia, which was redescribed by Daeniker (1933) as var. stenophyllum. According to Seemann (1866) the two forms occur on the same plant. This form has not been recorded east of Fiji.

TYPE.—Described by Forster from the Society Islands, but the only Forster specimen in the British Museum cited by Seemann is from New Caledonia.

RANGE.—Society Islands: U.S. Exploring Expedition in 1839, fide Gray. Tahiti: Anon. (BM, fide Seemann); Lay and Collie in 1826 (BM, fide Seemann); Bertero and Moerenhout in 1831–1832 (P, fide Drake del Castillo); Ribourt, ca. 1850 (P, fide Drake del Castillo); Bidwill, ca. 1850 (BM, fide Seemann; P. fide Drake del Castillo); Nadeaud 362 in 1856–1859 (P, fide Drake del Castillo); Jelinek in 1857–1859 (WU, fide Rechinger); Tilden 345, Paea, Papehue, June 1910, fruit (BISH, MIN, 2 sheets); Quayle 106, Mt. Aorai, alt. 800 m, 5 October 1921, flower (BISH); Setchell 80, Punaauia, Punaruu, 23 May 1922, fruit (UC); Setchell 297, Paea, Papehue, 7 June 1922, sterile (UC); Grant 4204, Papenoo, Orofena, alt. 640 m (2095 ft), Tecoma forest, 21 September 1930, sterile (BISH, MIN); Grant 4379, Mahina, Ahonu-Tuauru, alt. 585 m (1925 ft), Fagraea-Metrosideros forest, 4 November 1930, flower (BISH); Grant 4615, Paea, Ruapo, alt, 500 m (1660 ft), Aleurites forest, 4 December 1930, sterile (BISH, MIN).

Moorea: Grant 5396, Afareaitu, Putoa, alt. 380 m (1240 ft), Hibiscus-Pandanus-Cyathea forest, 18 February 1931, sterile (BISH, MIN).

Huahine: Grant 5334, Fare, Motu Aratupaupau, alt. 2 m, beach, 18 February 1931, flower (BISH, MIN).

Raiatea: Moore 144, alt. 300 m, 26 September 1926, flower, fruit (BISH, 2 sheets; MIN); Moore 285, Faaroa, alt. 60 m, 8 November 1926, fruit (BISH, 2 sheets; MIN).

Tahaa: Grant 5183, Ruutia, Mt. Ohiri, alt. 1110 ft (340 m), Xylosma-Morinda-Crossostylis forest, Jan. 25, 1931, sterile (BISH).

In Polynesia, known also from Makatea (!), Raivavae (!), Cook Islands (!), Samoa (!), Tonga, and Fiji (!). Ranges west to Australia and Java.

LOCAL NAMES.—The most common Tahitian name is tiatia-maua (variously misspelled in the literature as teatea-maowa (Parkinson) and tia tia mana (Solander in Seemann; Drake del Castillo), which is also regularly applied to Davallia epiphylla. F.B.H. Brown gives the shorter form tia tia as being used in Tahiti, but we can find no authority for this. A second common name is tafifi, which is a general Polynesian word for “vine” and is applied to other climbers. Nadeaud (1873: 83) lists a variation of this, afifi.

F.B.H. Brown reports the Marquesan name pitate, which in the Society Islands is apparently restricted to the cultivated jasmines. Wilder cites two Makatean names which also seem to be taken from the cultivated jasmines by extension, namely, pitate ofai (“rock jasmine,” i.e., climbing over rocks), and pitate ovile (“fruiting jasmine,” as distinct from the cultivated species, which here, except the infrequent J. azoricum, rarely, if ever, set fruit). Cheeseman gives the Rarotongan name aketa, and Setchell the Samoan names fuefue and fuemalo.

Jasminum didymum is a species of scrambling vine or low shrub. It is native to insular Southeast Asia from Java to the Philippines, as well as Australia (Northern Territory, Norfolk Island, and all states except Tasmania), as well as some islands in the Pacific (New Guinea, Solomon Islands, Fiji, Niue, New Caledonia and the Society Islands). Jasminum didymum occurs naturally in habitats from rainforests to arid and semi-arid shrublands.