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Strobilanthes alternata

(Burm.f.) Moylan ex J.R.I.Wood (2014)

This name is accepted

Kingdom: Viridiplantae Phylum: Magnoliophyta Class/Clade: Eudicot-Asterids Order: Lamiales Family: Acanthaceae Genus: Strobilanthes

metal leaf, metal-leaf, metallic plant, red flame, red flame ivy, red ivy, red-flame

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Description

Key Characters:

Growth Form: Perennial herbs.

Stems: Procumbent, 3–8 dm long.

Roots: Often rooting at the nodes.

Leaves: Leaves simple. Opposite and decussate (pairs of leaves alternating 90 degrees between nodes). Blades cordate, 3.5–15 cm long, 1.6–6 cm wide. Base cordate. Surfaces sparsely hispidulous, the hairs multicellular; green to purple–tinged or dark purple, especially on lower surface. Margins crenulate. Petioles 1.5–3 cm long. Stipules absent.

Flowers: Flowers in racemes. Flowers bisexual (perfect), subtended by greenish purple to dark purple ovate bracts 7–12 mm long, pedicels 2 mm long. Calyx 5-lobed, the lobes linear; 7–10 mm long. Corolla of 5 petals, White with purple veins, ca. 15 mm long, tubular, the lobes spreading. Stamens 4, in pairs, inserted on the corolla alternate with the lobes, sometimes 1 or more reduced to staminodes; anthers dithecal, opening by longitudinal slits. Ovary superior, 2-carpellate; ovule placentation axile; style filiform, simple.

Fruit: Capsules with two cells; usually dehiscing explosively; narrowly ellipsoid. Seeds 6–12; On small hooked stalks (modified funiculus) that ejects the seeds from the capsule; embryos usually large; endosperm absent.

Ploidy:

Habitat: Naturalized in lawns.

Elevation Range:

Historical Distribution

Images

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Uses and Culture

USES

Natural History

Statewide Status

Naturalized

Island Status

O'ahu Naturalized

Dispersal Agents


Vegetative Reproduction

Pollinators

Notes

  • Description digitized by Pumehana Imada
  • Plants sterile with no capsules formed. Native range unknown, but probably originally from Malesia; in Hawai‘i cultivated as a ground cover, it is propagated vegetatively and sometimes spreads in lawns.

Bibliography

Name Published In: Novon 23: 389 (2014)

Other References

Wagner et al. 1990:171 (O [as Hemigraphis alternata]); Staples & Herbst 2005:80 (KEY), 85 (DESCR); Wagner et al. 2005–(accessed Feb 2019; Syn. H. alternata)

Wagner, W. L., Herbst, D. R., & Sohmer, S. H. (1999). Manual of the Flowering Plants of Hawai'i, Vols. 1 and 2 (No. Edn 2). University of Hawai'i and Bishop Museum Press.

Staples, G., & Herbst, D. R. (2005). A Tropical Garden Flora. Bishop Museum Press.

Occurrences

SNo. Scientific Name Scientific Name Authorship Locality Habitat Basis of Record Recorded By Record Number Island Source Date
1 Strobilanthes alternata (Burm.f.) Moylan ex J.R.I.Wood Waimea District; Koke`e State Park, along Halemanu Road at ca. 0.4 miles from Highway 550 NE of turnoff at NASA tracking station PRESERVED_SPECIMEN J. Augello 68 Kauai HAPI 8/16/1997
2 Strobilanthes alternata (Burm.f.) Moylan ex J.R.I.Wood honolulu, kamehameha girls' school PRESERVED_SPECIMEN pearsall, g.a. collector number: s.n. Oahu BISH 12/28/1951
3 Strobilanthes alternata (Burm.f.) Moylan ex J.R.I.Wood garden of g. p. wilder, 1930 ualakaa st., honolulu PRESERVED_SPECIMEN wilder, g.p. collector number: s.n. Oahu BISH 3/1/1930
4 Strobilanthes alternata (Burm.f.) Moylan ex J.R.I.Wood university of hawaii campus, honolulu. at pathology lab PRESERVED_SPECIMEN woolford, h.a. collector number: 279 Oahu BISH 1/23/1956
5 Strobilanthes alternata (Burm.f.) Moylan ex J.R.I.Wood Aina Haina, Ahuwale Street. PRESERVED_SPECIMEN W. M. Bush 538 Oahu PTBG 1/25/1977
6 Strobilanthes alternata (Burm.f.) Moylan ex J.R.I.Wood kamehameha girls' school, kapalama hts., honolulu PRESERVED_SPECIMEN judd jr., a.f. bryan jr., e.h.; neal, m.c. collector number: s.n. Oahu BISH 6/6/1932
7 Strobilanthes alternata (Burm.f.) Moylan ex J.R.I.Wood oahu. waimea arboretum & botanical garden. PRESERVED_SPECIMEN j. augello 68 COLO 8/16/1997
8 Strobilanthes alternata (Burm.f.) Moylan ex J.R.I.Wood waimea arboretum & botanical garden, acanthaceae section. Cultivated grounds, sunny site at base of slope PRESERVED_SPECIMEN j. b. augello 68 NY 8/16/1997
9 Strobilanthes alternata (Burm.f.) Moylan ex J.R.I.Wood garden of g. p. wilder, 1930 ualakaa st., honolulu PRESERVED_SPECIMEN brown, f.b.h. (per wilder, g.p.) collector number: 1477 Oahu BISH 3/7/1928
10 Strobilanthes alternata (Burm.f.) Moylan ex J.R.I.Wood Waimea Arboretum & Botanical Garden, Acanthaceae section. Cultivated grounds, sunny site at base of slope PRESERVED_SPECIMEN J. B. Augello 68 NY 8/16/1997
11 Strobilanthes alternata (Burm.f.) Moylan ex J.R.I.Wood Honolulu; Foster Botanic Garden In partial shade. PRESERVED_SPECIMEN Lau, J. 1293 Oahu BISH 8/5/1985
12 Strobilanthes alternata (Burm.f.) Moylan ex J.R.I.Wood Oahu. Waimea Arboretum & Botanical Garden. PRESERVED_SPECIMEN J. Augello 68 US 8/16/1997
13 Strobilanthes alternata (Burm.f.) Moylan ex J.R.I.Wood Foster Botanic Garden. Cultivated. PRESERVED_SPECIMEN Joel Lau 1293 Oahu PTBG 2/1/1985
14 Strobilanthes alternata (Burm.f.) Moylan ex J.R.I.Wood Foster Botanic Garden PRESERVED_SPECIMEN Lau, J. 1293 Oahu US 8/5/1985
15 Strobilanthes alternata (Burm.f.) Moylan ex J.R.I.Wood Kalaheo, Puuwai Road. Cultivated. Cultivated. PRESERVED_SPECIMEN Tim Flynn 2779 Kauai PTBG 2/25/1988
16 Strobilanthes alternata (Burm.f.) Moylan ex J.R.I.Wood Oahu. Waimea Arboretum & Botanical Garden. PRESERVED_SPECIMEN Augello, J. B. 68 US 8/16/1997
17 Strobilanthes alternata (Burm.f.) Moylan ex J.R.I.Wood hodge podge, honolulu PRESERVED_SPECIMEN w. teraoka 7 Oahu US 4/17/1979
18 Strobilanthes alternata (Burm.f.) Moylan ex J.R.I.Wood foster botanic garden PRESERVED_SPECIMEN j. lau 1293 Oahu US 8/5/1985
19 Strobilanthes alternata (Burm.f.) Moylan ex J.R.I.Wood honolulu; foster botanic garden On grassy, sparsely shrubby slope at forest edge PRESERVED_SPECIMEN lau, j. collector number: 1293 Oahu BISH 8/5/1985
20 Strobilanthes alternata (Burm.f.) Moylan ex J.R.I.Wood University of Hawaii campus, Honolulu. At pathology lab PRESERVED_SPECIMEN Woolford, H.A. 279 Oahu BISH 1/23/1956
21 Strobilanthes alternata (Burm.f.) Moylan ex J.R.I.Wood Lyon Arboretum, Honolulu. At Cottage E Ground cover. PRESERVED_SPECIMEN Spence, G. 377 Oahu BISH 5/29/1976
22 Strobilanthes alternata (Burm.f.) Moylan ex J.R.I.Wood Honolulu, Kamehameha Girls' School PRESERVED_SPECIMEN Pearsall, G.A. s.n. Oahu BISH 12/28/1951
23 Strobilanthes alternata (Burm.f.) Moylan ex J.R.I.Wood Garden of G. P. Wilder, 1930 Ualakaa St., Honolulu PRESERVED_SPECIMEN Brown, F.B.H. 1477 Oahu BISH 3/7/1928
24 Strobilanthes alternata (Burm.f.) Moylan ex J.R.I.Wood garden of g. p. wilder, 1930 ualakaa st., honolulu PRESERVED_SPECIMEN wilder, g.p. collector number: s.n. Oahu BISH 12/1/1930
25 Strobilanthes alternata (Burm.f.) Moylan ex J.R.I.Wood captain cook; amy b. h. greenwell ethnobotanical gardens Abandoned coffee plantation at one side of Garden; in shade of white-flowered Calliandra bush. PRESERVED_SPECIMEN herbst, d.r. staples iii, g.w. collector number: 9286 Hawaii BISH 1/11/1991
26 Strobilanthes alternata (Burm.f.) Moylan ex J.R.I.Wood lyon arboretum, honolulu. at cottage e Ground cover. PRESERVED_SPECIMEN spence, g. collector number: 377 Oahu BISH 5/29/1976
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