Euploca ovalifolia (Forssk.) Diane & Hilger

Boraginaceae, E. S. Martins (Trichodesma by R. K. Brummit). Flora Zambesiaca 7:4. 1990

Morphology General Habit

Erect or decumbent annual or perennial herb up to 60(90) cm. high with a thin rootstock; stems pubescent, woody or subwoody to the base, branches often laterally compressed and silvery-sericeous to the extremities.

Morphology Leaves

Leaves numerous, alternate; petiole 2–20 mm. long, pubescent to villous; lamina 10–60 x 4–30 mm., obovate or elliptic, pubescent, strigose-villous or tomentose on both surfaces, with hairs of two kinds, long and hardy, appressed and with swollen bases, some weak, short and spreading, at least on the basal leaves, the others, rounded to retuse, rarely subacute but always apiculate or mucronate at apex, acute or subacute at base, margins slightly revolute.

Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences

Cymes dense, up to 17 cm. long when completely developed, often 2, sometimes 1 or 3, rarely 4 together; common peduncle 2–4(6) cm. long.

Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers

Flowers subsessile but pedicels increasing up to 2 mm. in fruit and decurrent on the rhachis.

Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Calyx

Calyx lobes unequal, the largest one up to 3.0 x 1.0 mm. (6.0 x 1.5 mm. in fruit), ovate, the smallest one 1.0–2.0 x 0.2–0.4 mm., lanceolate, strigose outside and inside.

Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Corolla

Corolla pubescent outside, glabrous inside save by a ring of flattened hairs (sometimes lacking) at the level of the anther tips, usually with yellow tube and white limb; tube 1.5–3.0 mm. long, slightly widened at the middle; lobes 0.5–1.5(2.0) x 0.4–1.5 mm., unequal or subequal, broadly ovate to triangular-ovate, suberect, apex acute or apiculate.

Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Androecium Stamens

Stamens inserted on the lower third of the corolla tube; anthers 0.7–1.2 mm. long, narrowly lanceolate, minutely hairy at apex, subsessile.

Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Gynoecium Pistil

Style very short; stigmatic ring well-marked; sterile appendix 0.3–0.6 mm. long, conical with apex truncate or minutely 2-dentate, glabrous or shortly hairy.

Morphology Reproductive morphology Fruits

Fruits c. 1.5 x 2.0 mm., subglobular depressed, densely clothed with whitish appressed short hairs; nutlets 4, free, with the inner surfaces without cavities.

Boraginaceae, B. Verdcourt. Flora of Tropical East Africa. 1991

Morphology General Habit

Usually a perennial herb 7–90 cm. long or tall with thick woody taproot and stems branched, procumbent, woody at the base but sometimes erect and apparently sometimes annual (?flowering in first year); stems often compressed, very leafy, silky-silvery pubescent on the young branches.

Morphology Leaves

Leaf-blades obovate or elliptic, 0.5–5.5 cm. long, 0.25–2.5 cm. wide, retuse but mucronate or apiculate or less often acute at the apex, cuneate at the base, pubescent to strigose-villous, often silvery on both surfaces, the hairs of two sorts, longer and tubercle-based and shorter and thinner, the margins entire, narrowly thickened, only the costa distinctly visible; petiole up to 1.5(–2) cm. long.

Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences

Cymes 1–3, terminal, scorpioid, spike-like, often paired, at first often very short and ± capitate, 1.5–15 cm. long, strigose; flowers disposed in 2 ranks, at first subsessile; peduncles up to 3.5 cm. long; pedicels accrescent, 0.5–2 mm. long finally decurrent.

Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Calyx

Calyx 1.6–3.5 mm. long, strigose outside, persistent and accrescent in fruit, deeply divided into unequal lanceolate lobes, 1.5–3.3 mm. long, 0.3–1.2 mm. wide.

Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Corolla

Corolla white, often yellow at the throat, strigose-pubescent outside with adpressed hairs; tube cylindrical, enlarged at the middle, (1.4–)2.3–3.7 mm. long, with a ring of adpressed hairs inside at tops of anthers; lobes broadly elliptic to ovate-triangular, erect or spreading, 0.7–1 mm. long, 0.4–1.5 mm. wide, the acute apices sometimes inflexed.

Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Gynoecium Ovary

Ovary subglobose, 0.5 mm. diameter, glabrous or pubescent at the tip.

Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Gynoecium Stigma

Stigma sessile, conic with basal crown, 0.5–0.7 mm. long, truncate or sometimes very shortly bifid with several erect hairs at apex.

Morphology Reproductive morphology Fruits

Fruits subglobose, flattened, 1.7–2 mm. diameter, 4-lobed and breaking into 4 nutlets, the external face densely covered with short ± adpressed white hairs; internal faces devoid of cavities.

Figures

Fig. 19/6, p. 71.

Habitat

Essentially a plant of wet places in dry bushland, etc., e.g. on sand in A. seyal woodland near water, sandy beaches by dry country rivers, dried mud around pools in grassland, salt pans, also on black cotton soil near irrigation channels; ± 0–1635 m.

Distribution

K1 K4 K6 K7 P T1 T2 T4 T5 T6 T7 T8 Senegal to Ethiopia and Somalia to South Africa and Angola,also introduced into Pacific and Taiwan

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

Morphology General Habit

Prostrate to erect herb or subshrub with stems up to 0.9 m long or tall, silvery pubescent with short hairs and longer tubercle-based hairs

Morphology Leaves

Leaf-blades obovate to elliptic, 0.5–6 x 0.25–3 cm, cuneate at the base, retuse and apiculate or sometimes acute at the apex; petiole up to 1.5(–2) cm long

Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences

Flowers on 0.5–2 mm long pedicels, in simple or branched 1.5–15 cm long cymes

Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Calyx

Calyx silvery pubescent; lobes lanceolate, unequal, 1.5–3.3 mm long

Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Corolla

Corolla white or with yellow throat, appressed pubescent outside; tube 2–3.7 mm long; lobes 0.7–1.5 mm long, acute

Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Gynoecium Stigma

Stigmatic head sessile, conical, 0.5–0.7 mm long, hairy at apex

Morphology Reproductive morphology Fruits

Nutlets 4, 1.5–2 mm long, densely covered with short hairs.

Distribution

N2; C1, 2; S1–3 widespread in tropical Africa, Madagascar, Arabian Peninsula, Pakistan, India, also introduced elsewhere.

Ecology

Altitude range 50–720 m.