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(Last Modified On 4/5/2013)
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(Last Modified On 4/5/2013)
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Genus
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Marcgravia L.
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PlaceOfPublication
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Sp. PI. 503. 1753.
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Description
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Climbing shrubs or vines, often epiphytic, with dimorphic branches and leaves; the sterile, juvenile branches creeping, appressed to the substrate, and attached by roots; the fertile branches free, mostly pendulous, often angular, and pro- vided with wartlike lenticels. Leaves distichous, those of the sterile; creeping branches small, thin, sessile, mostly cordate; those of the fertile branches dimor- phic, larger and thicker, often with a drip-tip. Inflorescences mostly umbelliform, sometimes racemose, the apical (central) flowers abortive with only the bracts (nectaries) well-developed, the fertile flowers without bracts. Flowers pedicellate, the bracteoles sepaloid, mostly appressed to the calyx; sepals 4, decussate, the in- ner 2 smaller, persistent; petals connate into a deciduous cap; stamens 7-many, free; ovary 4-20-loculed, the ovules numerous. Fruit capsular, mesocarp pulpy, often loculicidally and septifragally dehiscent from the base; seeds numerous.
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Habit
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shrubs or vines
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Distribution
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A genus of about 60 species; about 12 species in Central America, of which eight are known from Panama.
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Note
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An important character within the genus Marcgravia is how the flowers are inserted on the pedicels. In the existing literature the descriptions of this charac- ter are inaccurate and often even misleading. There are three possibilities which may be characterized as "flowers erect on pedicels" (Fig. 5B), "flowers oblique on pedicels" (Fig. 7B), and "flowers perpendicular on pedicels" (Fig. 8B). This is the terminology I have used for Marcgravia in the key to species and in the descriptions of the various species.
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Key
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a. Flowers erect or oblique on pedicels; nectaries pitcher-shaped, 1.5-5 cm long. b. Leaves 1.5-5.5 cm wide; pedicels 2-7 cm long. c. Pedicels 3.5-7 cm long. d. Lateral veins and veinlets more or less prominent on both sides of the blade; nectaries much shorter than the pedicels. e. Leaves with numerous dark dots below ................. l. M. serrae ee. Leaves without dark dots ....................... 2. M. macrophylla dd. Lateral veins and veinlets (mostly) obscure; nectaries only a little shorter than the pedicels. f. Inflorescence with 15-30 flowers and 3-5 nectaries.... 3. M. brownei ff. Inflorescence with 7-12 flowers and only one nectary or none.... . ............................................ 4. M. schippii cc. Pedicels 2-3 cm long .................................... 5. M. affinis bb. Leaves 5-10 cm wide; pedicels ca. 1.5 cm long. g. Leaves membranaceous, not punctate below ....6. M. membranacea gg. Leaves rigidly coriaceous, punctate below ....7. M. atropunctata aa. Flowers perpendicular on pedicels; nectaries dipper-shaped, 5-7.5 cm long.... .................................................... 8. M. nepenthoides
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