Capsicum dimorphum (Miers) Kuntze, Revis. Gen. Pl. 2: 449. 1891.

Barboza, Gloria E., Garcia, Carolina Carrizo, Bianchetti, Luciano de Bem, Romero, Maria V. & Scaldaferro, Marisel, 2022, Monograph of wild and cultivated chili peppers (Capsicum L., Solanaceae), PhytoKeys 200, pp. 1-423 : 1

14. Capsicum dimorphum (Miers) Kuntze, Revis. Gen. Pl. 2: 449. 1891.

Figs 54 , 55

Brachistus dimorphus Miers, Ann. Mag. Nat. Hist., ser. 2, 3(16): 267. 1849. Type. Colombia. Quindio: Region froid en Las Tapias, Dec 1814, J. Goudot s.n. (holotype: K [K000585926]; isotypes: BM [BM000777291, pro parte only fragments at bottom right side], P [P00410061]).

Type.

Based on Brachistus dimorphus Miers.

Description.

Erect or scandent shrubs or subshrubs, (0.4-) 0.8-2 (-3) m tall, profusely branched above, the branches dichotomously spreading in a typical “zig-zag” appearance. Young stems terete or slightly angled, fragile, greenish-purple or maroon, densely pubescent with ochraceous or white, spreading or antrorse, flexuous or hirsute, simple, uniseriate, 2-8-celled, eglandular trichomes 0.3-1 (-1.5) mm long, sometimes glabrous or glabrescent; nodes green; bark of older stems pale brown or golden-brown; lenticels light brown, sometimes absent. Sympodial units difoliate, the leaves geminate; leaf pair markedly unequal in size and shape. Leaves membranous, rarely coriaceous, with sparse or abundant antrorse eglandular trichomes adaxially and abaxially, the trichomes spreading on the veins abaxially; blades of major leaves 4.2-12 (-17) cm long, 0.8-4 (-8) cm wide, elliptic, the major veins 4-6 on each side of mid-vein, sometimes purple-coloured abaxially, the base attenuate, asymmetric or not, the margins entire, the apex long-acuminate; petioles 0.5-1.2 cm long, moderately pubescent or glabrescent; blades of minor leaves sessile, 0.5-4 (-8) cm long, 0.4-1.7 (-5) cm wide, orbicular or ovate or rarely elliptic, the major veins 2-3 on each side of mid-vein, the base short-attenuate or rounded, asymmetric, the margins entire, the apex obtuse or rounded, with same pubescence as major leaves. Inflorescences axillary, 2-5 flowers or flowers solitary; flowering pedicels (3-) 5-14 mm, angled, green or green with purple lines, curved to pendent, non-geniculate at anthesis, glabrescent to moderately pubescent, the eglandular trichomes short or long, spreading or antrorse; pedicels scars inconspicuous. Buds ovoid, purple or yellowish. Flowers 5-merous. Calyx 1.75-2.6 mm long, 3-3.3 mm in diameter, cup-shaped, circular or pentagonal in outline, fleshy, green, greenish-purple or purple, calyx appendages absent or 1-3, as mucro-like structures, 0.5-1 mm long, spreading and laterally flattened, emerging 0-0.2 mm below the margin, glabrescent to densely pubescent with antrorse or spreading trichomes. Corolla 6-9.5 (-11) mm long, 8-12 mm in diameter, entirely yellow or yellow with dark purple or maroon spots outside and within, stellate with interpetalar membrane, lobed nearly halfway to the base, glabrous adaxially and abaxially, the tube 2-3.5 mm long, the lobes (1.75-) 2-4 mm long, 1.5-2.8 (-3) mm wide, triangular or ovate, spreading or slightly reflexed at anthesis, the margins and tips papillose. Stamens five, equal; filaments (1.5-) 2-2.5 mm long, cream or light lilac, inserted on the corolla ca. 2 mm from the base, with auricles fused to the corolla at the point of insertion; anthers 1.5-2.3 mm long, ovoid, slightly apiculate, pale purple, bluish-purple, dark yellow or cream, connivent at anthesis. Gynoecium with ovary 1.37-1.6 mm long, 1.3-1.5 mm in diameter, cream, ovoid; ovules more than two per locule; nectary ca. 0.6 mm tall; styles homomorphic, 4.5-6.7 mm long, exserted 1.3-2 mm beyond the anthers, white near the base and purple or pale lilac to the apex, clavate, slightly curved distally; stigma 0.2-0.3 mm long, 0.6 mm wide, usually discoid, green or yellowish-green. Berry 5-11 mm in diameter, globose or subglobose, bright or opaque light green when immature, bright reddish-orange or bright red at maturity, deciduous, non-pungent, the pericarp thick, opaque, lacking giant cells (endocarp smooth); stone cells absent; fruiting pedicels 6-15 mm long, usually erect, rarely curved to pendent, sometimes angled, widened distally, green or purple; fruiting calyx 4-5 (-7) mm in diameter, persistent, not accrescent, discoid, sometimes ripped at the margin, greenish-white or purple, the appendages if present, reflexed or spreading, purple. Seeds (6-) 10-36 per fruit, 1.9-2.7 mm long, 1.8-2.1 mm wide, C-shaped or teardrop-shaped, brownish-black to black, the seed coat reticulate (SM, SEM), the cells polygonal in shape, the lateral walls straight; embryo annular.

Distribution.

Capsicum dimorphum is endemic to north-western South America and is most common in Colombia and Ecuador and reaching central Peru (Fig. 56 ).

Ecology.

Capsicum dimorphum is an Andean species of premontane or montane moist forests. It is found in the margins, understorey or interior of primary or secondary (sometimes disturbed) forests, between 950 and 3,000 m elevation.

Phenology.

Flowering and fruiting all year.

Chromosome number.

Not known.

Common names.

Colombia: Ahuyamo ( Quindío, Bernal 1828), Mirtico de monte (Cauca, Pittier 737; Cundinamarca, Duque-Jaramillo 3330).

Uses.

None recorded.

Preliminary conservation assessment.

EOO (738,784.034 km2); AOO (452 km2). Capsicum dimorphum is a widespread Andean species in northern South America; considering the large EOO and its presence in officially protected areas in Colombia, Ecuador and Peru, we suggest a status of Least Concern (LC).

Discussion.

Capsicum dimorphum is a member of the Andean clade, recovered as sister to C. longifolium ( Carrizo García et al. 2016; Barboza et al. 2019). Capsicum dimorphum is variable in the degree of general pubescence, leaf shape and presence or absence of purple or maroon spots on the corolla (Fig. 55B-G ). It is morphologically most similar to C. longifolium ( Barboza et al. 2019) with which it shares short pedicels and similar shape and colour of the corolla, fruit and seeds. Capsicum dimorphum can be distinguished by having usually pubescent vegetative organs and calyces (vs. glabrous), membranous, longer and wider major leaves, flowers that are solitary or up to five per axil (vs. 3-9 flowers on a short rachis) and a calyx without appendages or with three minute appendages (vs. 2-3 winged triangular appendages).

Capsicum dimorphum is sympatric with C. geminifolium which is distinguished by having long-acuminate leaves, 2-5 long and thin calyx appendages and campanulate corollas. Populations of C. dimorphum from Peru (Department Pasco) are glabrescent to glabrous plants and the leaves are somewhat coriaceous, but the flowers and fruits match those of the pubescent populations of Colombia and Ecuador.

Specimens examined.

See Suppl. material 4: Appendix 4.

Figures

Figure 54. Capsicum dimorphum A flowering branch B flower; C section of the calyx showing the venation; D sector of opened corolla; E gynoecium; F fruit G anatomical detail of the pericarp (note the absence of giant cells in the mesocarp) H seed; I seed, in cross section J structure of seed coat at the seed margin K structure of seed coat at the seed body L embryo A, B, D, E from Jaramillo et al. 2698 C from Sneidern 3044 F-L from Cuatrecasas 8572. Drawn by L. Ochoa.

Figure 55. Capsicum dimorphum A plant B, C flower buds of different colour D, E flowers, in lateral view, with different corolla colour outside F, G flowers, in front view, with different colouration patterns in the corolla within H immature fruit I mature fruit A, H, I from Beltran 140, photos by G. Beltran B-G from Orejuela R. et al. 2685, photos by G. E. Barboza.

Figure 56. Distribution of C. dimorphum and C. eshbaughii.