Compilation
Psychotria swynnertonii

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Name

Identification
Psychotria kirkii (Bremek.) Verdc. [family RUBIACEAE ] (stored under name); Verified by Verdcourt,B., Psychotria swynnertonii Bremek. [family RUBIACEAE ]
Related name
  • Psychotria swynnertonii
  • Psychotria griseola
  • Psychotria volkensii
  • Psychotria kirkii
  • Psychotria nigropunctata
  • Psychotria tarambassica

Flora

Entry for PSYCHOTRIA kirkii (Bremek.) Verdc. var. swynnertonii [family RUBIACEAE]
Herbarium
Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew (K)
Collection
Flora of Tropical East Africa
Resource Type
Reference Sources
Entry From
Flora of Tropical East Africa, page 1, (1976) Author: B. VERDCOURT
Names
PSYCHOTRIA kirkii (Bremek.) Verdc. var. swynnertonii [family RUBIACEAE], in K.B. 30: 263 (1975). Type: Tanzania, Kilosa, Swynnerton 770 (BM, lecto.!, K, isolecto.!)
?PSYCHOTRIA collicola K. Schum. [family ], in E.J. 33: 364 (1903); De Wild., Pl. Bequaert. 2: 353 (1924); Bremek. in J.B. 17: 279 (1933); T.T.C.L.: 522 (1948); Petit in B.J.B.B. 36: 186 (1966). Type: Tanzania, Kilosa/Uzaramo District, E. of Mtondwe, Stuhlmann 8281 (B, holo. †)
PSYCHOTRIA swynnertonii Bremek. [family RUBIACEAE], in J.B. 71: 277 (1933); T.T.C.L.: 522 (1949); Petit in B.J.B.B. 36: 115, t. 7 (1966)
Information
Suffrutex with mostly ± herbaceous stems, (15–)20–50(–90) cm. tall, from a woody rootstock (see note); stems densely pubescent or less often pubescent or almost glabrous. Leaf-blades elliptic or oblong-elliptic, 6–17 cm. long, 1.5–8 cm. wide, typically 11.5 × 3.5 cm., acute or subacute at the apex, cuneate at the base, densely sometimes ± subscabridly pubescent above, sparsely to densely pubescent or thickly woolly beneath with tangled hairs, the margins distinct but only slightly crinkly; petiole mostly very short, rarely up to 8 mm. long. Fig. 6.
Range
DISTR. T3, 6–8
Altitude range
280–1200 m.
Distribution
TANZANIA Handeni District Mziha-Handeni road, about 32 km. from Handeni, 5 Apr. 1953, Drummond & Hemsley 2031!TANZANIA Morogoro, 18 Feb. 1935, E. M. Bruce 829!TANZANIA Iringa District N. Gologolo Mts., 13 Sept. 1790, Thulin & Mhoro 982!
Distribution (external)
Mozambique
Malawi
Notes
This is a very poorly defined variant; Petit himself, although stating that it is usually easily distinguishable from P. volkensii, admitted that some gatherings exist which contain specimens partly referable to one and partly to the other, e.g. Bruce 829 (Tanzania, Uluguru Mts., Morogoro) and Tanner 1176 (Tanzania, Geita Juma Is.). Moreover he refers in his paper to Swynnerton 771 (BM, K) one of the syntypes of P. swynnertonii, stating that it is P. volkensii, but the Kew sheet bears two specimens, one of which he has annotated as P. volkensii and the other as P. swynnertonii. The variety is interesting as showing the path by which such small subshrubs as P. spithamea evolved. K. Schumann does not mention nodules in his original description of P. collicola but Bremekamp who must have seen the type includes it in his so-called revision of the species. I think Petit’s suggestion as to its identity is probably correct.

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