Ledebouria revoluta (L.f.) Jessop

Stedje, B. & Kativu, S. (2023). Hyacinthaceae. In: M.A. García & B.F.P. Loeuille (eds), Flora Zambesiaca, Vol. 13(3). Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew.

Type

Type: South Africa, Cape, Thunberg 8508 (UPS lectotype), lectotypified by Stedje & Thulin (1995), non Drimia revoluta (L.f) Kunth. FIGURE 13.3.3.

Morphology General Habit

Bulbous herb 6–40 cm high; bulb ovoid with dark and papery outer scales, up to 12 cm high

Morphology Leaves

Leaves 3 or more, not always fully developed at anthesis, often with a pseudopetiole up to 6 cm; lamina narrow to broadly lanceolate, erect or spreading, at least 3 times as long as wide, 4.5–35 cm × 1.4–13 cm, uniformly green or green with purple spots or streaks, sometimes covering large parts of lamina; very narrow leaved plants are either tiny, around 10 cm, or their leaves are not fully developed

Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences

Inflorescence 1.5–21 cm, relatively lax to dense with up to 150 flowers; peduncle 3–30 cm long, erect or slightly curved; pedicels spreading, 2–15 mm long in flower

Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Tepal

Tepals pink to purple, often with a darker central band, segments revolute, 3–9 mm long

Morphology Reproductive morphology Fruits

Capsule subglobose, 4–6 × 3–7 mm, or splitting into parts corresponding to loculi making fruit look apocarpous

Morphology Reproductive morphology Seeds

Seeds subglobose, brown to black.

Distribution

Botswana, Zambia, Zimbabwe, Malawi, Mozambique. Widespread in tropical and southern Africa.

Ecology

In grassland or various woodland types on sandy, clay or lateritic soils, sometimes on rocky, disturbed or burnt ground; 10–1800 m.

Conservation

Widespread species; not threatened.

Note

The species is very variable regarding leaf morphology and characters of the ovary and capsule. Attempts to split it into more taxa have failed as there is no correlation of characters, and no consistency of morphological characters and groups determined in analyses of plastid DNA (Stedje et al., unpublished). We therefore prefer to use a wide species concept at this stage. There are a number of references in the literature to other species of Scilla or Ledebouria which are probably erroneous and referable to Ledebouria revoluta. These include: Scilla platyphylla Baker (Phiri 2005 ‒ known only from Angola); Ledebouria apertifolia (Baker) Jessop (Mapaura & Timberlake 2004, Setshogo 2005, Bandiera et al.,Wild Fl. S Mozambique 2006 ‒ possibly a mis-naming of L. zambesiaca); Ledebouria floribunda (Baker) Jessop (Scilla megaphylla Baker) (da Silva et al. 2004, Mapaura & Timberlake 2004); Ledebouria luteola Jessop (Mapaura & Timberlake 2004, Setshogo 2005); Ledebouria marginata (Baker) Jessop (Mapaura & Timberlake 2004, Setshogo 2005); Ledebouria sandersonii (Baker) S.Venter & T.J.Edwards (Mapaura & Timberlake 2004).

Hyacinthaceae, Brita Stedje, Ph.D. Flora of Tropical East Africa. 1996

Morphology General Habit

Plants small to relatively robust, 9-45 cm.

Morphology Leaves

Leaves narrowly to broadly lanceolate, 5-35 cm. long, 1.1-6 cm. wide, often with purple spots or irregular blotches, rarely with a pseudopetiole, up to 7 cm. long.

Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences

Inflorescence 3-25 cm., lax to dense, with up to ± 100 flowers; pedicels 2-9 mm.

Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers

Flowers greenish to pink or purple.

Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Perianth

Perianth-segments 3-8 mm. long.

Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Androecium Stamens Filaments

Filaments filiform.

Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Gynoecium Pistil

Ovary ± 1 mm. long; style 2-5 mm. long.

Morphology Reproductive morphology Fruits

Capsule subglobose or sometimes schizocarpous.

Morphology Reproductive morphology Seeds

Seeds ± 3 per capsule, 3-4 mm. long.

Habitat

Grassland, bushland or woodland, often in sandy soils at rocky places; 125-2700 m

Distribution

K1 K2 K3 K4 K5 K6 T2 T3 T4 T6 T7 T8 U1 U2 widespread in tropical and southern Africa

M. Thulin et al. Flora of Somalia, Vol. 1-4 [updated 2008] https://plants.jstor.org/collection/FLOS

Vegetative Multiplication Bulbs

Bulbs up to 5 cm or more in diam.

Morphology Leaves

Leaves 1 to several, lanceolate or narrowly elliptic, up to 15 x 3 cm, narrowing below into a petiole-like base, often spotted purplish or dark green, glabrous

Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences

Inflorescence many-flowered, up to 25 cm long including up to 15 cm long peduncle, ± lax; bracts ± subulate from a broader base, c. 1 mm, often paired; pedicels 1–10 mm long, often pink when young

Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Tepal

Tepals united at base, narrowly oblong, reflexed at anthesis for most of the length, greenish and sometimes tinged with purple, 3–7 mm long, obtuse at the tip

Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Androecium Stamens

Stamens almost as long as tepals; filaments filiform, united to tepals at the base, purplish or white

Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Gynoecium Ovary

Ovary deeply 3-lobed, 6-angled and sometimes with 6 horn-like appendages; style about as long as tepals

Morphology Reproductive morphology Fruits

Capsule depressed-globose, c. 5 mm or more long.

Distribution

N1–3; C2; S1 widespread in tropical and southern Africa, India and Sri Lanka

Ecology

Altitude range 0–1700 m.

Extinction risk predictions for the world's flowering plants to support their conservation (2024). Bachman, S.P., Brown, M.J.M., Leão, T.C.C., Lughadha, E.N., Walker, B.E. https://nph.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/nph.19592

Conservation

Predicted extinction risk: not threatened. Confidence: confident