Gentiana albicalyx
Gentiana albicalyx is a species of flowering plant in the family Gentianaceae. It is native to the Himalaya and adjacent regions of Asia, including China (southern Tibet), Nepal, and parts of the eastern and western Himalaya.
It is an annual herb that grows in high-elevation alpine environments.
Description
Gentiana albicalyx is a small annual herb, typically 1.5–4 cm tall, with erect stems that are simple in the lower portion and more highly branched above.
Leaves are densely crowded and overlapping, with obovate to flabellate blades measuring approximately 3–5 × 3.5–6 mm. The margins are membranous and smooth, and the apex is rounded to truncate with a small recurved tip.
The inflorescence forms a compact, capitate cluster at the stem apex, with numerous subsessile flowers. The calyx is obconic, 4–4.5 mm long, with membranous margins and rounded lobes.
The corolla is blue with a pale yellow base, broadly tubular, about 7–8 mm long, with ovate lobes and small semiorbicular folds (plicae) between them.
The fruit is an ovoid capsule approximately 2 mm long. Flowering and fruiting occur in June.
Distribution and habitat
The species occurs in high-elevation regions of Asia.
Its range includes:
- Southern Tibet (China)
- Nepal
- Bhutan
- Northwestern India (including Sikkim)
It grows in alpine meadows at elevations of approximately 2600–4500 m.
Taxonomy
The species was first described by Isaac Henry Burkill in 1906 in the Journal of the Proceedings of the Asiatic Society of Bengal.
Two subspecies are currently recognized:
- Gentiana albicalyx subsp. albicalyx
- Gentiana albicalyx subsp. globosa (T.N.Ho) Halda
A previously described taxon, Gentiana capitata var. strobiliformis, has been treated in synonymy with this species.
Type specimens of G. albicalyx are preserved in major herbaria, including collections at the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew and the Natural History Museum, London.
References
albicalyx Category:Flora of China Category:Flora of Nepal Category:Flora of Tibet