Chascanum E.Mey.

Verbenaceae, B. Verdcourt. Flora of Tropical East Africa. 1992

Morphology General Habit

Erect or spreading perennial herbs or undershrubs, often quite woody at base and often densely pubescent Leaves opposite or subopposite, mostly ovate or oblong, toothed or incised-dentate, rarely ± entire, ± petiolate

Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers

Flowers sessile or shortly pedicellate in terminal spikes or spike-like racemes; rhachis not excavated; bracts small and narrow; bracteoles minute or absent

Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Calyx

Calyx narrowly tubular, 5-ribbed and 5-angled, somewhat oblique, 5-toothed, dilating and splitting longitudinally at maturity

Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Corolla

Corolla white, yellowish or pink, infundibuliform or hypocrateriform; tube slender, straight or curved, often widened at apex, glabrous outside, pilose inside between stamens; limb ± oblique, with 5 subequal or unequal lobes, ± 2-lipped

Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Androecium Stamens

Stamens 4, didynamous, inserted in upper part of the corolla-tube, included or slightly exserted

Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Gynoecium Pistil

Ovary cylindrical or narrowly oblong, glabrous, 2-locular, each locule with one basal anatropous ovule; style terminal, filiform, elongate; stigma ± oblique, sub-bilobed

Morphology Reproductive morphology Fruits

Fruit straw-coloured to black, oblong, of 2 1-seeded linear-oblong nutlets ribbed on outer surface, sometimes winged at apex, minutely verruculose-asperulous on seed-part inside

Morphology Reproductive morphology Seeds

Seeds linear, exalbuminous.

Flora Zambesiaca. Vol 8, Pt 7. Avicenniaceae, R. Fernandes. Nesogenaceae, M.A. Diniz. Verbenaceae, R. Fernandes. Lamiaceae, R. Fernandes. 2005.

Distribution

A genus of c. 25 species, mainly African, extending to Madagascar, Arabia, Pakistan and India.

Morphology General Habit

Erect or spreading perennial herbs or undershrubs, ± woody at the base, ± densely pubescent, the [a4] indumentum often with gland-tipped hairs.

Morphology Leaves

Leaves opposite-decussate, simple, entire, serrate or dentate, lobed or pinnatipartite, sessile or petiolate.

Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers

Flowers sessile or shortly pedicellate in terminal spikes or racemes, slightly zygomorphic[a5].

Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Calyx

Calyx narrowly tubular, 5-angled, with a green longitudinal rib on each angle and hyaline whitish between the ribs, slightly oblique, 5-dentate or 5-apiculate, the teeth ± unequal; fruiting calyx dilating and splitting longitudinally at the front, from base to apex.

Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Corolla

Corolla white or yellowish, funnel-shaped or hypocrateriform; tube slender straight or curved, somewhat widened at the apex, glabrous outside; limb ± oblique, 5-lobed or 5-partite with lobes subequal or unequal, glabrous outside, papillose-hairy at the base as well as in the throat.

Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Androecium Stamens

Stamens 4, didynamous, included, inserted in the upper part of the corolla tube; filaments short, shortly glandular hairy; anthers ovate, basifixed.

Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Gynoecium Pistil

Ovary cylindric, glabrous, 1-carpellate, carpel 2-locular, each locule with one basal anatropous ovule; style terminal, filiform, glabrous; stigma ± oblique, divided at the apex into an anterior stigmatiferous lobe and a posterior small tooth.

Morphology Reproductive morphology Fruits

Fruit a schizocarp enclosed within the persistent calyx, shorter than the calyx, oblong, hard, glabrous, formed by 2 equal 1-seeded mericarps, ribbed on the outer surface, sometimes winged in the upper 1/3, minutely verruculose-asperulous on the seed part inside, separating from one another[a6].

Morphology Reproductive morphology Seeds

Seeds linear, without albumen.