From the Western Cape

Home , Anthericum, Chlorophytum, Trachyandra

S.Afr.J.Bot., 1990,56(2): 257- 260 257

A new species of Trachyandra section Trachyandra (Asphodelaceae) from the western Cape

P.L. Perry Compton Herbarium, National Botanic Gardens, Private Bag X7, Claremont, 7735 Republic of South Africa

Accepted 6 November 1989

Trachyandra pro/ifera P.L. Perry, an autumn-flowering geophyte with distinctive proliferating roots is described. It has a limited distribution in the Nieuwoudtville area on the Bokkeveldberge. Trachyandra karrooica Oberm. appears to be the most closely related species.

Trachyandra pro/ifera P.L. Perry, 'n herfsblommende geofiet met kenmerkende proliferende wortels word beskryf. Dit besit 'n beperkte verspreiding op die Bokkeveldberge in die Niewoudtville-area. Trachyandra karrooica Oberm. is waarskynlik die spesie wat die naaste verwant is.

Keywords: Asphodelaceae, taxonomy, Trachyandra

Introduction intlorescentia simpIici , glabra, pauciflora et tloribus 30 mm The genus Trachyandra was first described by Kunth diametro differt. (1843) when he divided Anthericum L. into the three TYPUS.- Cape Province: NieuwoudtviIIe, Farm Glen Lyon , genera Phalangium Mill. , Bulbinella Kunth and flower April 1986 , leaf June 1986, Snijman 869 (NBG, Trachyandra Kunth. Most authors after that date holotypus) . reverted to Anthericum for all or part of the related groupings until the revision by Obermeyer (1962) of the Plants deciduous small , up to 200 mm high , gregarious, South African species of Anthericum, Chlorophytum and proliferating to form large clumps. Roots few , thick , Trach yandra. fleshy, mainly up to 75 mm long, 5 mm wide near the Although the distinction between Anthericum and base, gradually tapering to the apex, with root hairs Chlorophytum is somewhat tenuous, relying on seed along most of the length and scattered narrower laterals; structure, Trachyandra forms a more distinctive outer flakey layer light rusty brown with an inner bright grouping separated from the former two genera on a red layer, and white internally; swollen regions formed number of characters. Among these are the caducous along the length of the roots develop a bud on the upper perianth, versatile anthers, in articulated pedicels, and side and a portion of root with bud may later break away single flowers supported by a single bract. from the parent plant. Rhizome short, erect, about 5 x 5 These characters relate Trachyandra more closely to mm , orange, darker than roots, merging into roots. Bulbine and Bulbinella and a recent classification by Cataphylls (squamae) tubular 9-10 mm long, in 3-4 Dahlgren et al. (1985) places these three genera in the layers, thin, membranous hyaline, with the inner family Asphodelaceae, whereas Anthericum and Chloro surrounding separate leaves. Leaves 2- 6, erect, terete, phytum are placed in Anthericaceae. Trachyandra is 80-85 mm long at flowering extending up to 200 mm separated from Bulbine and Bulbinella by the white to long by the end of the growing season, 1-1.5 mm wide, pinkish maculate or immaculate flowers, the inflores bright green, basal 8 mm dark reddish, glabrous. cence which is frequently branched and the scabrid Peduncle up to 125 mm long, terete, shortly scabrid filaments. basally, sparsely hispid to glabrous above, pale green . The 49 species of Trachyandra currently recognized Inflorescence a simple lax raceme, 40 mm x 35 mm, few are predominantly South African with only two species flowered (3-5). Bracts basally saccate, cuspidate, 3 mm completely outside the area in Malawi and Angola. One long, colourless, brown-keeled, margin irregularly widespread species extends as far north as Kenya. There denticulate. Pedicels up to 8 mm long in flower , erecto is a marked concentration of species (31) in the winter patent, glabrous, same colour as peduncle. Perianth stel rainfall region of the Cape. Although many of these late somewhat, pendulous, pleasantly sweet-scented, species are widespread and common, several occurring about 30 mm diameter. Tepals sub-equal, narrowly in the more arid parts are apparently restricted in oblanceolate, 14 mm long, with outer 2.5-3 mm wide distribution and poorly known. Species flowering in and inner up to 4 mm wide, all with a constriction 1.5-2 autumn, such as the one described here, are especially mm from the base and shortly clawed, white with a poorly represented in herbaria. brown central nerve and yellow angular blotch just above the constriction. Stamens spreading as flower first Description opens but slowly becoming erect and connivent round Trachyandra prolifera P. L. Perry, sp. nov. the ovary at anthesis. Filaments dimorphic, white; outer A ceteris speciebus habito dense fasciculiformi, evolventi a 8-9 mm long, filiform , muricate with very short retrorse crassis radicibus stoloniformibus horizontal iter crescentibus; trichomes; inner 10-11 mm long, basal part flattened 258 S.-Afr.Tydskr. Plantk., 1990, 56(2)

Figure 1 Trachyandra prolitera. Vegetative plant as seen in July, showing the proliferating root system (Snijman 869). S.Afr.l.Bot., 1990, 56(2) 259

and expanded to form a bulge surrounding and hiding unknown (Figures 1 & 2) . the ovary, with longer retrose cilia on the outside only, Flowering time: March-April. apical 6 mm filiform with short retrorse trichomes. Leafing time: March-September. Anthers versatile, 1-1.25 mm x 0.75 mm, yellow. Ovary Distribution: This species is known only from a few ovoid, 1.5 x 1.25 mm, green. Style narrowly filiform, 10 localities on the Bokkeveld escarpment in the vicinity of x 0.25 mm, white, somewhat declinate with apex bent Nieuwoudtville, an area which receives rainfall mainly in upwards. Stigma capitate, papillose. Fruit and seeds winter (Figure 3). It mainly occurs on the flats near the

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Figure 2 Trachyandra prolifera. 1, Above-ground part of flowering plant, with partly developed leaves, natural size; 2a, flower, face view in an early stage of opening with tepals spreading but stamens and ovary still in the closed position; 2b , flower, side view with separate bract; 3, inner tepal and stamen ; 4, outer tepa I and stamen; 5, gynaecium (Snijman 869). 260 S.-Afr.Tydskr. Plantk. , 1990,56(2)

o under 500 metres L.=.: il 500 - 1000 " [}ff.!1000 -1500 " ~ 1500 - 2000 " _ over 2000 ,. o 100 200 300 Km. ~.----~.----~.----~,

Figure 3 Distribution of Trachyandra prolifem. base of dolerite koppies where the heavy clayey, red, soil the plants belonged to the same ramet. In May 1986 a begins to merge into the Dwyka tillite of the flats . search was made for fruiting material in the two known Dolerites of the Nieuwoudtville and Calvinia district localities of the plant, but no plants could be found, appear to support a rich geophytic flora with several possibly due to lack of rains or to grazing by animals such local endemics such as Hesperantha vaginata (Sweet) as dassies (Hyrax). Goldblatt, Romulea monadelpha (Sweet) Baker and Bulbinella latifolia Kunth var. doleritica P.L. Perry Specimens examined (Snijman & Perry 1987). T. prolifera has also been found -3119 (Calvinia): Farm Glen Lyon, Nieuwoudtville (- AC) , in clay soil in shallow pans in the Dwyka tillite area. 4/4/1986. D. Snijman 869 (NBG); 20/3/1987, P.L. Perry 3461 Diagnostic features: T. prolifera clearly belongs to (NBG); Nieuwoudtville Wild Flower Reserve (- AC) , 19/41 Section Trachyandra as it is not glandular-pubescent and 1983 , Perry & Snijman 2048 (NBG). the outer leaves are reduced to squamae (cataphylls) (Obermeyer 1962). It would appear to be closest to T. Acknowledgements karrooica Oberm., the only other autumn-flowering species in Section Trachyandra. T. karooica has been Sincere thanks are due to Mrs J. Loedolff for the poorly collected but appears to have a wide distribution illustrations, to Dr P. Bruyns for translating the in the winter and summer rainfall area of the Karoo. diagnosis into Latin, to the MacGregor family of Farm Both species have a bright red inner skin to the swollen Glen Lyon for hospitality during field work, and to Ms roots and produce a substance from the roots which D . Snijman for general advice and companionship in the stains the pressing and mounting paper purple. T. prolif field. era may be separated from T. karroica by the few flowered, simple inflorescence with comparatively large References flowers, those of T. karooica reaching only 22 mm DAHLGREN, R.M.T., CLIFFORD H.T., & YEO, P.F. diameter, and by the freely branched vegetatively repro 1985. The families of the Monocotyledons. Springer ducing root system. Verlag, Berlin, Heidelberg, New York & Tokyo. A number of living collections of T. prolifera, consis KUNTH, C.S. 1843. Enumeratia plantarum. Vol. 4, pp. 573- 587, J.G. Cotta, Stuttgart and Tubingen. ting of a proliferating mass of roots and many leafing OBERMEYER, A.A. 1962. A revision of the South African shoots produced only a few inflorescences over two species of Anthericum, Chlorophytum and Trachyandra. seasons in cultivation. The flowers opened at mid-day Bothalia 7: 669- 767 . and lasted for only about 4 hours. No fruits were formed SNIJMAN, D . & PERRY, P. 1987. A floristic analysis of the despite an attempt to cross-pollinate two inflorescences Nieuwoudtville Wild Flower Reserve, north-western Cape. from the same collection. This could be accounted for if S.Afr.1. Bot., 1987, 53: 445-454.