Description

Key Characters:

Growth Form: Plants 1.2–2 m tall.

Stems: Stems 0.6–2 m tall x 1–6 cm diam., leaf scars 3–3.5 mm tall x 6–7 mm wide, transversely rhombic, the corners acute.

Roots:

Leaves: Leaves simple. Alternate. Blades oblong or oblanceolate, 14–22 cm long x 1.73 cm wide. Apex obtuse or acute. Base cuneate or attenuate. Surfaces densely pubescent on margin, sometimes also pubescent on the dorsal and/or ventral midrib. Margins subrevolute. Sessile. Stipules absent.

Flowers: Flowers in inflorescence 0.5–1 m tall, 2–5–branched (rarely unbranched in small plants). densely pubescent, each branch 13–45–flowered and cylindrical in outline, its axis green; peduncle densely covered with sterile bracts that gradually decrease in size acropetally: sterile bracts 25–120 mm long x 10–30 mm wide, elliptic, oblong, lanceolate, ovate, or obovate, the apex acute or obtuse, the base rounded; floral bracts 17–30 mm long x 8–18 mm wide. elliptic, ovate or obovate, the apex acute or obtuse, the base rounded or subcordate; pedicels 15–35 mm long, of more–or-less equal length throughout; hypanthium 5–9 mm long x 7–11 mm diam., broadly obconic, 1/5–1/10 as long as the corolla, densely pubescent. Flowers bisexual (perfect). Calyx 5-lobed, lobes 8.5–12 mm long x 4–5 mm wide, triangular or oblong, equaling the hypanthium to 2.2 times as long, the apex obtuse or rounded, sepals connate, tube adnate to ovary. Corolla zygomorphic, dorsally cleft almost to base, 44-57 mm long, pale yellow, glabrous; tube 15-18 mm long x 8-13 mm diam. at middle, straight, cylindric or expanding slightly towards the mouth, 1.3-2 times longer than broad; dorsal lobes 29-39 mm long x 3.5-5 mm wide, 1.6-2.2 times longer than the tube; ventral lip 22-24 mm long x 12-17 mm wide. Stamens 5, alternate with corolla lobes; anthers with apical tufts of white hairs on all 5, dithecal, opening by longitudinal slits, coherent but separating after anthesis or connate and forming a tube into which pollen is shed; filaments distinct or connate above, attached to the epigynous nectary disk or to base of corolla, rarely adnate to corolla tube; filament tube 36–45 mm long, slightly deflexed, 2.8–4.5 times longer than anther tube, glabrous; anther tube 4 mm diam.; dorsal anthers 9–13 mm long: ventral anthers 8–9.5 mm long. Ovary inferior, 2-celled, often crowned with an annular nectary disk; ovule placentation axile, or when 1-celled with 2 parietal placentas; stigmas wet or dry, 2-lobed, appressed and nonreceptive as the style grows through the anther tube, pushing out the pollen, after which the stigmas spread apart and become receptive.

Fruit: Loculicidal capsules; 13–18 mm long x 10–12 mm diam.; dehiscent at apex by 2 valves. Seeds numerous; with a straight; short to spatulate dicotyledonous embryo embedded in oily endosperm; 1.5–2.5 mm long x 0.6–0.8 mm wide.

Ploidy:

Habitat: Known only from montane wet mixed Communities of the Alaka'i Swamp from Pihea to Wai'ale'ale.

Elevation Range: 1100–1560 m.