Cyphostemma greenwayi Verdc.

Vitaceae, Bernard Verdcourt. Flora of Tropical East Africa. 1993

Morphology General Habit

Vigorous climber to several m. long; stems drying ± pale, striate, with ± tangled white pubescence or ± glabrescent, not glandular; tendrils present.

Morphology Leaves

Leaves sometimes ± opposite, 5-foliolate; leaflets broadly elliptic or ovate, 2–15.5 cm. long, 1.5–7 cm. wide, subacute to acuminate at the apex, cuneate to ± rounded at the base, shallowly crenate-serrate, the tooth apices ± thickened, glabrous above and beneath except for scattered hairs on the venation and with very few to ± many sessile amber discoid glands beneath and very few smaller stalked glands on midrib above at base; petioles 2–8 cm. long; petiolules 0–5 mm. long; stipules drying pale yellow-green with brown apex and darker brown veins, rounded-oblong to ovate or oblong-lanceolate, 1.1–2.2 cm. long, 7–10 mm. wide, acuminate when young but apex soon abraded, forming protective cone-like structures at ends of young shoots.

Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences

Cymes 3.5 cm. wide, becoming 26 cm. wide in fruit; peduncles 3–9 cm. long; upper axes cottony pubescent at first and with additional purplish red multicellular hairs and some gland-tipped hairs; pedicels to 7 mm. long, attaining 1.4 cm. in fruit (2 cm. in pole flower), with similar indumentum; bracts oblanceolate to narrowly triangular, 4–9 mm. long, 2 mm. wide.

Morphology General Buds

Buds oblong, 2–3 mm. long, not constricted, broadened and ± lobed at apex, with few gland-tipped hairs at apex or these absent but sessile yellow glands present.

Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Calyx

Calyx 2 mm. wide, densely pubescent.

Morphology Reproductive morphology Fruits

Fruits ovoid, 1–1.4 cm. long, 4–10 mm. wide, slightly pubescent and with dense long green crimson-gland-tipped hairs 2–3 mm. long which are widened and flattened at the base.

Morphology Reproductive morphology Seeds

Seeds pale, obovoid-cuneiform, 9–11 mm. long, 5.5–6.5 mm. wide; narrowed to thin broad but not pointed base; ventral ridge very strong and angular in section the seed-sides sloping away from it and bearing 2 sharp strong pointed tubercles on each side 2 mm. long; mid-dorsal ridge obscure and lateral ridges bearing 5–9 very prominent tubercles, sometimes one extended as a wing from ridge to ridge.

Figures

Fig. 13/4, p.63.

Habitat

Riverine grassland with scattered shrubs, Commiphora woodland, Combretum-Cordia-Vernonia bush in clearings in Acacia-Cordia sinensis riverine fringe; 780–850 m.

Distribution

not known elsewhere T5 T7