Abutilon eremitopetalum

Caum (1934)

This name is accepted

Kingdom: Viridiplantae Phylum: Magnoliophyta Class/Clade: Eudicot-Rosids Order: Malvales Family: Malvaceae Genus: Abutilon

hidden petal abutilon

Description

Key Characters:

Growth Form: Shrubs, closely grayish pubescent with stellate and simple glandular hairs.

Stems:

Roots:

Leaves: Leaves simple. Alternate. Blades deeply cordate–ovate, 7–12 cm long. Apex acute to acuminate. Surfaces grayish-green, pubescent with stellate and simple glandular hairs. Margins crenate–dentate. Petioles about as long as blades, sometimes pilose with simple hairs. Stipules usually present.

Flowers: Flowers solitary or paired in the leaf axils, exceeded by the leaves, pedicels 1.5-4 cm long, articulate with the calyx sometimes pilose with simple hairs and stellate and glandular pubescent; involucel absent. Flowers bisexual (perfect). Calyx cup-shaped to suburceolate, 1–1.5 cm long; 5-lobed, lobes dentate, 1–3 mm long, pubescent within, valvate in bud. Petals included in calyx, greenish with brighter green, inflexed margins, lower surface reddish, 0.5–1 cm long, up to 9 mm wide. Stamens 5 to numberous, monadelphous, forming a staminal column, staminal column exserted, whitish to yellowish, 2–2.8 cm long; antheriferous in a terminal cluster; anthers monothecal. Pollen globose, echinate. Ovary superior, (1-)3-celled to many-celled, carpels 5 to numerous, borne in a single whorl or rarely seemingly superposed whorls; ovule placentation axile, each with 2-9 ovules in a vertical row; style exceeding the staminal column; style branches coral-colored, as many as carpels; stigmas terminal, capitate, green, scarcely expanded.

Fruit: Schizocarps often tardily separating; cylindrical; 8–10 mm long; 10–13 mm in diameter; pilose; mericarps usually oblong in lateral view; 8–9; 8–10 mm long; apex acute; lateral walls usually smooth; loculicidal dehiscence complete or partial. Seeds asymmetrically reniform; upto 2.8 mm long; matted white or brown pubescent; with or without endosperm.

Ploidy:

Habitat: Extremely rare in dry forest.

Elevation Range: 210–520 m.

Historical Distribution

Uses and Culture

USES

PROPAGATION/CULTIVATION

  • The seeds of Abutilon eremitopetalum are contained in a cylindrical fruit about 1/2 inch in diameter. The fruit is dry when mature and splits into 8 or 9 segments. The 1/16 inch seeds are somewhat kidney-shaped and covered with white or brown fuzz.
  • Abutilon sp. have a high germination rate (95%). Soaking shortens the germination time from 3 to 6 months for untreated seed to 2 to 4 weeks for soaked seeds. Soaking recommendations vary from 1 to 24 hours using either room temperature or hot water. Soak the seeds until they sink, and discard any that float. Seeds should be sown 1/8 inch deep in a well-draining medium such as 3 parts #2 perlite to 1 part #4 Sunshine Mix or 1 part peat to 1 part perlite to 1 part soil. Keep containers in part shade until seeds germinate.
  • Seed should be dried before being stored. Storage recommendations vary; silica gel and refrigeration may improve the length of time seeds remain viable. Ragone reports 65% germination rate for seeds that had been stored with desiccant at ambient temperature (80 degrees F) and humidity (25%) for 3 months. These seeds were soaked in cold water for 1/2 hour before sowing and took 4 months to germinate. In this report, germination percentages for all seeds stored longer than 3 months dropped to almost zero regardless of treatment before sowing. (Bornhorst 1996; Ragone 1993; Stratton 1998; Wagner 1990). [Data from Herring, E. C., & Criley, R. A. (2003). The Hawaiian Native Plant Propagation Web Site: Developing a Webbased Information Resource. HortTechnology, 13(3), 545-548. https://www.ctahr.hawaii.edu/hawnprop/]

Natural History

Statewide Status

Endemic

Island Status

Kaua'i Only found in cultivation
O'ahu Only found in cultivation
Lana'i Endemic

Dispersal Agents


Pollinators

Notes

  • Description digitized by Ellena Ruiz
  • Description digitized from the Manual of the Flowering Plants of Hawaii
  • Schizocarp cylindrical,8-10 mm long, 10-13 mm in diameter,pilose, mericarps 8-9, 8-10 mm long, apex acute.style branches coral-colored;

Bibliography

Name Published In: Occas. Pap. Bernice Pauahi Bishop Mus. 10(15): 7 (1934)

Other References

Wagner et al. 1990:871 (L)

Occurrences

SNo. Scientific Name Locality Habitat Basis of Record Description Recorded By Record Number Island Source Date
1 Abutilon eremitopetalum Locality redacted. Contact Bishop Museum Botany Department for details Dry forest of Osmanthus, Myoporum etc. Preserved_Specimen 2 m shrub, calyx pale green, the margin almost whitish, 5-6 lobed, 2 slightly larger, hence slightly 2-lipped; petals convolute, thick and subcartalaginous, the margin bright green, the back pale green or slightly tinged with red, margings inflexed; staminal column whitish, filaments and semiorbicular compress reniform anthers coral-colored; 5-8 styles paler coral-colored, heavy filform, stigmas green uniform diameter with the styles, discord; carpels in fruit magenta - purple dotted. St.John, H. 18801 Lanai BISH 1938-04-12
2 Abutilon eremitopetalum Locality redacted. Contact Bishop Museum Botany Department for details Preserved_Specimen Munro, G.C. 5 Lanai BISH 1927-05-28
3 Abutilon eremitopetalum Locality redacted. Contact Bishop Museum Botany Department for details Preserved_Specimen Shrub of four ft. Leaves dark, dull green above with paler yellowish-green veins, grey-green below with whitish-green veins. Calyx green at base, whitish-green near apex; petals bright green; staminal column whitish-green; anthers and filaments pale purple. Flynn, T.W. 3434 Kauai BISH 1989-06-06
4 Abutilon eremitopetalum Locality redacted. Contact Bishop Museum Botany Department for details At edge of dry forest. Preserved_Specimen 4 ft erect sparsely branched shrub; corolla bright yellow. Degener, O. 24235 Lanai BISH 1957-08-09
5 Abutilon eremitopetalum Locality redacted. Contact Bishop Museum Botany Department for details Preserved_Specimen Munro, G.C. 265 Lanai BISH 1928-01-20
6 Abutilon eremitopetalum Locality redacted. Contact Bishop Museum Botany Department for details Preserved_Specimen Judd Jr., A.F. Oahu BISH 1934-04-15
7 Abutilon eremitopetalum Locality redacted. Contact Bishop Museum Botany Department for details Preserved_Specimen Judd Jr., A.F. Oahu BISH 1936-11-07
8 Abutilon eremitopetalum Locality redacted. Contact Bishop Museum Botany Department for details Associated with wiliwili, Canthium, Dodonaea, Diospyros, etc. Preserved_Specimen Garnett, W. 892 Lanai BISH 1989-02-20
9 Abutilon eremitopetalum Locality redacted. Contact Bishop Museum Botany Department for details Preserved_Specimen Munro, G.C. 511 Lanai BISH 1930-02-11
10 Abutilon eremitopetalum Locality redacted. Contact Bishop Museum Botany Department for details Dry forest of Osmanthus, Myoporum etc. Preserved_Specimen 2 m shrub, calyx pale green, the margin almost whitish, 5-6 lobed, 2 slightly larger, hence slightly 2-lipped; petals convolute, thick and subcartalaginous, the margin bright green, the back pale green or slightly tinged with red, margings inflexed; staminal column whitish, filaments and semiorbicular compress reniform anthers coral-colored; 5-8 styles paler coral-colored, heavy filform, stigmas green uniform diameter with the styles, discord; carpels in fruit magenta - purple dotted. St.John, H. 18801 Lanai BISH 1938-04-12
11 Abutilon eremitopetalum Locality redacted. Contact Bishop Museum Botany Department for details N facing slope in Diospyros sandwicensis lowland dry forest with Sida fallax, Erythrina sandwicensis, Dodonaea viscosa, Rauvolfia, Prosopis pallida, Lantana, Aleurites, Wikstroemia, Leucaena leucocephala. Preserved_Specimen About 30 plants, 6-9 ft ht with fruit, no flowers. Perlman, S. 6405 Lanai BISH 1987-08-31
12 Abutilon eremitopetalum Locality redacted. Contact Bishop Museum Botany Department for details Scattered in open understory of a Lama and Wiliwili Forest. Preserved_Specimen About thirty plants were seen, 1.5 to 4 meters tall. Hobdy, R.W. 3016 Lanai BISH 1989-02-20
13 Abutilon eremitopetalum Locality redacted. Contact Bishop Museum Botany Department for details Xerophytic forest, planted here by G. C. Munro. Preserved_Specimen Shrub 1 m tall. Fosberg, F.R. 12543 Lanai BISH 1935-12-01
14 Abutilon eremitopetalum Locality redacted. Contact Bishop Museum Botany Department for details Scattered in open understory of a Lama and Wiliwili Forest. Preserved_Specimen About thirty plants were seen, 1.5 to 4 meters tall. Hobdy, R.W. 3016 Lanai BISH 1989-02-20
15 Abutilon eremitopetalum Locality redacted. Contact Bishop Museum Botany Department for details Edge of xerophytic forest, planted here by G. C. Munro. Preserved_Specimen Bush 1.5 m tall. fls. with anthers yellow. Fosberg, F.R. 12528 Lanai BISH 1935-12-01