Varronia dardani (Taroda) J.S. Miller (2007: 373)

Melo, José Iranildo Miranda De, Paulino, Renan Da Cruz, Oliveira, Regina Célia De & Vieira, Diego Daltro, 2018, Flora of Rio Grande do Norte, Brazil: Boraginales, Phytotaxa 357 (4), pp. 235-260 : 244-245

2.1. Varronia dardani (Taroda) J.S. Miller (2007: 373) . ( Fig. 5A–H )

≡ Cordia dardani Taroda in Taroda & Gibbs (1986a: 111).

Shrubs, up to 3 m tall; branches villous, trichomes ferrugineous. Leaves alternate; blade 2.4–8 x 2.2–6.5 cm, membranaceous, bicolor, ovate to widely ovate or rarely deltoid or orbicular, apex slightly retuse or acuminate, margin crenate to crenulate, base cordate to truncate, adaxially strigose, abaxially tomentose; venation craspedodromous; petiole 0.4–2.1 cm long, sulcate, tomentose. Inflorescences 4–8 cm long, terminal and axillary, spiciform, congested; peduncle 2.2–6 cm long, tomentose. Flowers ca. 15 mm long, sessile, monomorphic; calyx ca. 3 mm long, cylindrical, obconic to obcampanulate, lobes ca. 0.5 mm long, lanceolate, acuminate at apex; corolla ca. 15 mm long, tubular, cream; tube ca. 8 mm long; lobes ca. 7 mm long, rounded. Stamens with filaments ca. 1 mm long, anthers ca. 0.7 mm long, oblong, lobes divaricate, dorsifixed. Ovary 1–1.2 mm long, ovate to subpiriform; style 3–3.5 mm long; stigmatic branches ca. 0.5 mm long, stigmas ca. 0.5 mm long, foliaceous. Drupe 4–5 mm long, ovoid, red, with the calyx almost entirely enveloping fruit; seed not seen.

Notes:— Among the species with records for Rio Grande do Norte, V. dardani is morphologically related to V. multispicata (Cham.) Borhidi , with which it shares the shrubby habit and spiciform inflorescences. However, V. dardani has the ovate ovary (vs. subpiriform in V. multispicata ), tubular corolla (vs. campanulate), ovate to widely ovate, rarely deltoid or orbicular leaf blades (vs. narrowly to widely elliptic, rarely ovate to obovate), with cordate to truncate base (vs. attenuate or obtuse). This species is being completely illustrated for the first time in this study.

Geographic distribution:— Distributed in Brazil in the Northeast, in the states of Rio Grande do Norte, Pernambuco, Alagoas, and Sergipe ( Flora do Brasil 2020 under construction). C5.

Habitat:— Caatinga, in sandy soils.

Phenology:— Collected in flower in April and June.

Selected material examined:— BRAZIL. Rio Grande do Norte: Cerro Corá, 05º58’00”S, 36º20’00”W, April 1980, fl., O.F. Oliveira et al. 448 (MOSS). Jucurutu, June 2008, fl., A.A. Roque 627 (UFRN).

Figures

FIGURE 5. A–H. Varronia dardani: A. Reproductive branch; B, C. Leaves, adaxial surface; D. Inflorescence; E. Flower; F. Stamens; G. Gynoecium; H. Fruit. (Drawn by R.R. Pessoa).