Piperaceae
Piper

Piper capense L.f.

First published in Suppl. Pl.: 90 (1782)
This species is accepted
The native range of this species is Tropical & S. Africa, Comoros, Madagascar. It is a scrambling shrub or tree and grows primarily in the wet tropical biome.

Descriptions

Piperaceae, Bernard Verdcourt. Flora of Tropical East Africa. 1996

Morphology General Habit
Weakly erect aromatic shrub or subshrub or ± herbaceous or sometimes a straggling liane 1–5 m. long or tall, sometimes several-stemmed from the base; stems glabrous or hairy, swollen at the nodes, up to 3 cm. wide (in life); rootstock tuberous.
Morphology Leaves
Leaves ovate to elliptic, or rounded ovate, 5–18 cm. long, 2.5–13 cm. wide, distinctly acuminate at the apex, cuneate to cordate at the base, glabrous above, glabrous to pubescent on nerves beneath or in variety ± hairy all over, palmately 3–9(–11)-nerved, the 3 median nerves reaching the apex; petiole 0.5–5(–8.3) cm. long, glabrous to hairy; stipule-like outgrowths lanceolate, 1–1.6 cm. long, thin, deciduous.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers
Flowers hermaphrodite or female, either both on one spike or on separate spikes; spikes creamy white, solitary, leaf-opposed, terminal and pseudolateral but in reality terminal but overtopped by sympodial growth, 0.7–10 cm. long; peduncle 1–5.2 cm. long, glabrous or hairy; bracts ± round, 1–1.5 mm. wide, pubescent below.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Androecium Stamens
Stamens 2–3.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Gynoecium Pistil
Ovary ovoid; style short; stigmas 2, recurved.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Fruits
Fruit white or green, rounded ovoid, 2–4 mm. long, compressed, obtuse; seeds brown, shiny.
[FTEA]

Piperaceae, M.A. Diniz. Flora Zambesiaca 9:2. 1997

Morphology General Habit
An aromatic evergreen shrub or subshrub from a tuberous rootstock, ± erect to c. 3 m high or with scandent or trailing stems 3–4(5) m long.
Morphology Stem
Stems terete, weak, greenish, with glabrous to ± villous swollen nodes; nodes up to 3 cm wide.
Morphology Leaves Petiole
Petiole 0.5–5(8.3) cm long, grooved above near the base, terete below, glabrous or ± villous.
Morphology Leaves Stipules
Stipules 1–1.6 cm long, lanceolate, membranous, deciduous.
Morphology Leaves
Leaves 5–15.5(18.5) ? 2.5–15(17.5) cm, ovate, rarely elliptic or elliptic-ovate, acuminate at the apex, ± asymmetric and cuneate to rounded or shortly cordate at the base, membranous, discolorous, dark green on upper surface, light green or greyish to glaucous below, glabrous on both surfaces with the nerves ± densely pilose-pubescent towards the base on the lower surface, or the lower surface pilose-pubescent all over, palmately (3)5–11-nerved with the 3 median nerves reaching the apex, impressed above, prominent below.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences
Inflorescences consisting of solitary leaf-opposed spikes, terminal, or lateral when overtopped by sympodial growth, creamy-white; peduncles (1)1.5–5.2 cm long, glabrous or ± pilose-pubescent; rhachis (0.7)2.5–8.5(10) cm long, glabrous.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers
Flowers: bisexual and male in separate spikes, or both on one spike with male flowers towards the base and hermaphrodite flowers towards the apex; bracts 1–1.5 mm in diameter, subcircular, glabrous above, densely pubescent below and on the petiolule; stamens 2–3; ovary ovoid; style short; stigmas 2, recurved.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Fruits
Fruit sessile 2–4 mm long, spheric-ovoid, obtuse.
[FZ]

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
[AERP]

IUCN Red List of Threatened Species https://www.iucnredlist.org/species/120214450/120214458

Conservation
LC - least concern
[IUCN]

Piperaceae, Hutchinson and Dalziel. Flora of West Tropical Africa 1:1. 1954

Morphology General Habit
A shrub, erect or more or less scandent.
[FWTA]

Sources

  • Angiosperm Extinction Risk Predictions v1

    • Angiosperm Threat Predictions
    • http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0

  • Flora Zambesiaca

    • Flora Zambesiaca
    • http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0

  • Flora of Tropical East Africa

    • Flora of Tropical East Africa
    • http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0

  • Flora of West Tropical Africa

    • Flora of West Tropical Africa
    • http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0

  • Herbarium Catalogue Specimens

    • 'The Herbarium Catalogue, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Published on the Internet http://www.kew.org/herbcat [accessed on Day Month Year]'. Please enter the date on which you consulted the system.
    • Digital Image © Board of Trustees, RBG Kew http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/

  • IUCN Categories

    • IUCN Red List of Threatened Species
    • http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0

  • Kew Backbone Distributions

    • The International Plant Names Index and World Checklist of Vascular Plants 2025. Published on the Internet at http://www.ipni.org and https://powo.science.kew.org/
    • © Copyright 2023 World Checklist of Vascular Plants. http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0

  • Kew Names and Taxonomic Backbone

    • The International Plant Names Index and World Checklist of Vascular Plants 2025. Published on the Internet at http://www.ipni.org and https://powo.science.kew.org/
    • © Copyright 2023 International Plant Names Index and World Checklist of Vascular Plants. http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0