B. balangcodiae

Culture

Original Botanical Description or Link to

Monoecious, perennial, glabrous herb. Stem erect, to ca. 100 cm tall, 1–5 mm in diameter, olive green to crimson, internodes 2–6 cm long, nodes slightly swollen. Stipules deciduous, olive green, ovate-triangular, 8–12 × 4–6 mm, slightly keeled, glabrous, margin entire, apex mucronate. Petioles terete, 1–4 cm long, ca. 0.5 mm in diameter, crimson. Leaves lanceolate, asymmetric, base oblique and cordate, apex acute, margin irregularly dentate, 6–12 × 2–5 cm; lamina flat; adaxially dark green, crimson along veins, with sparse, large, white spots between veins; abaxially crimson; venation palmate, primary veins 7 or 8. Bracts deciduous, olive green turning brown, narrowly triangular to ovate, 4–6 × 2–4 mm, margin entire. Inflorescence axillary, dichasium or cyme, unisexual, peduncle olive green to crimson. Staminate flower: pedicel 12–18 mm long; tepals 2, white, sometimes greenish at apex, ovate, 12–18 × 10–12 mm, margin entire, apex rounded; androecium actinomorphic or zygomorphic; stamens 26–38, golden yellow; filaments 2–3 mm, slightly fused at base; anthers obovate, ca. 1.5 mm long, apex retuse. Pistillate flower: pedicel 12–18 mm long; tepals 5, white, sometimes greenish at apex, obovate, 12–18 × 14–18 mm, margin entire, apex rounded; ovary olive, trigonous-elliptic, 8–10 × 6–8 mm (wings excluded), 3-locular, placentation axile; 3-winged, wings reddish, equal; styles 3, golden yellow, ca. 3 mm long, apically 2-cleft; stigmas in a spiral band. Capsule trigonous-elliptic, 10–12 mm long, 7–8 mm wide excluding wings or 18–20 mm wide including wings; pedicel ca. 18–22 mm long; wings 3, equal, truncate distally, cuneate proximally. Diagnostic characters:—This species is allied to B. esculenta Merrill (1911: 389) from which it is distinguished by its cordate leaf base (vs. not cordate leaf base) and white tepals (vs. vermilion tepals). Begonia balangcodiae also resembles B. leucosticta Warburg (1904: 55) but differs from the latter by its cordate leaf base (vs. subcordate leaf base) and larger tepals with 12–18 mm (vs. ca. 3–5 mm) long in staminate flowers. In addition, this species is similar to B. negrosensis Elmer (1910:736) but has lanceolate, glabrous leaves (vs. obovately oblong and sparsely hairy leaves) and white to greenish tepals (vs. pinkish tepals).