Centemopsis gracilenta (Hiern) Schinz

Amaranthaceae, C.C. Townsend. Flora of Tropical East Africa. 1985

Morphology General Habit

Annual herb (or probably short-lived perennial in undisturbed ground), erect, mostly 0.5–1.6 m.

Morphology Stem

Stem wiry and tough, strongly striate with pale ridges, smooth and glabrous throughout or more commonly with whitish multicellular hairs about the somewhat swollen nodes, rarely slightly scabrid on the ridges below the nodes, much branched and bushy from near the base upwards, the branches divaricate-ascending and frequently with sterile axillary short shoots.

Morphology Leaves

Leaves linear to linear-filiform, 1.5–9.5 cm. × 0.5–3(–4) mm., glabrous to sparingly pilose (especially when young), occasionally slightly scabrid on the pale and prominent lower surface of the midrib and on the revolute margins, sessile, sharply mucronate at the apex.

Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences

Inflorescence carmine to pink or whitish, spiciform, 1.2–4 × 0.6–1 cm. in flower, and rounded or conical at the tip, elongating in fruit to as much as 20 cm.; axis very densely white-lanate, strongly furrowed but not becoming honeycombed with pits after fruit-fall, densely clad with the persistent bracts.

Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences Bracts

Bracts lanceolate to ovate-lanceolate, 1.25–1.5 mm., membranous with a dark brown shortly excurrent midrib, glabrous or more commonly basally pilose and sparingly ciliate.

Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences Bracteoles

Bracteoles deltoid-ovate, 1.25–1.75 mm., membranous with a distinctly excurrent brownish or red midrib, glabrous or sparingly pilose.

Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers

Flowers solitary in the axils of the bracts.

Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Tepal

Tepals slightly indurate and the outer especially somewhat more prominently 3-nerved in fruit, but never strongly ribbed as at that stage in C. kirkii, nor with the inflorescence appearing spiky. Tepals oblong, 2.5–4 mm.; outer 2 at anthesis firm centrally with a slender slightly excurrent midrib and 2 pairs of slender lateral nerves (these often branching above), glabrous, increasingly hyaline-margined upwards with the margins inflexed; inner 3 similar but slightly less firm, at least the innermost usually with only one pair of lateral nerves.

Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Androecium Stamens

Filaments very slender, 1.5–3 mm., the pseudostaminodes finally ± 3/4 the length of the filaments, oblong, fimbriate around the apex.

Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Gynoecium Ovary

Ovary ellipsoid with a dense beard of hairs around the middle, glabrous below and more thinly hairy above.

Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Gynoecium Style

Style slender, 1.25–2 mm. not asymmetrically placed on the ripe capsule.

Morphology Reproductive morphology Fruits

Capsule pyriform, 2.25–2.5 mm., compressed.

Morphology Reproductive morphology Seeds

Seed compressed-ovoid, brown, 2–2.25 mm., shining, finely reticulate.

Habitat

In deciduous woodland, along roadsides, on dry shaded banks, by ditches and as a weed of cultivation - always on sandy soil; 50–2270 m.

Distribution

K7 T4 T5 T7