Description

Key Characters:

Growth Form: Shrubs or small trees.

Stems: Stems sharply angled, apparently many-branched, sparsely short–hispidulous.

Roots:

Leaves: Leaves simple. Opposite. Blades elliptic to oblanceolate, 5–10 cm long, 2–7 cm wide. Apex acuminate. Base attenuate to cuneate. Upper surfaces glabrous; lower surfaces moderately appressed short–hispidulous along veins; blades slightly rugose. Margins entire or rarely toothed. Petioles 0–0.8 cm long. Stipules interpetiolar, may also be intrapetiolar, membranous, connate into a cup ca. 4–5 mm long, distinct from petioles, glabrous or sparsely hispidulous near base, deciduous.

Flowers: Flowers in inflorescences terminal, flowers 6–20 in compound, sessile cymes, short–hispidulous throughout or glabrate, pedicels 6–12 mm long, bracts and bracteoles filiform, 1.5–2.5 mm long. Flowers bisexual (perfect) or functionally unisexual, actinomorphic. Calyx 5-merous, lobes slightly unequal, united at base, linear–subulate, 1.5–2(–2.5) mm long, 0.5–0.8 mm wide, imbricate, glabrous, inner surface of calyx often with colleters at the base, margin mostly fimbriate. Corolla 5-merous, probably pale yellow or greenish yellow, funnelform–salverform, 6.5–7 mm long, the tube ca. 4 mm long, glabrous externally, the lobes narrowly deltate, 2.5–3 mm long, sparsely hirtellous on the tube within and on lower part of lobes; ; lobes imbricate or contorted in bud. Stamens 5-merous, as many as and alternate corolla lobes, attached to mouth of corolla, exserted, usually recurved after anthesis, glabrous or hairy; filaments mostly short; anthers dithecal, opening by longitudinal slits. Ovary superior or partly inferior, carpels hairy or glabrous, 2– or 3-locular, sometimes partitions imperfect in upper part of ovary; ovules numerous, amphitropous, placentation axile; style terminal, mostly short; stigma clavate, ellipsoid, to globular, sometimes ± oblong, about as large as ovary.

Fruit: Capsules ovoid; 3.5–4 mm long; 3–3.2 mm in diameter; 2–valved; valves not keeled; apex with a small blunt beak 0.2–0.3 mm long; septicidal to sub–septifragal; maturing to green; with or without a black–purple tinge; usually becoming brown–black when over–mature. Seeds not seen.

Ploidy:

Habitat: Montane Wahiawa Mountains; Kaua'i.

Elevation Range: 300–1100 m