identifier	taxonID	type	CVterm	format	language	title	description	additionalInformationURL	UsageTerms	rights	Owner	contributor	creator	bibliographicCitation
52D54EB30D445BD8BE9EB556EC14D694.text	52D54EB30D445BD8BE9EB556EC14D694.taxon	http://purl.org/dc/dcmitype/Text	http://rs.tdwg.org/ontology/voc/SPMInfoItems#GeneralDescription	text/html	en	Hellwigia opalina Ardiyani & A. D. Poulsen 2026	<div><p>Hellwigia opalina Ardiyani &amp; A. D. Poulsen, sp. nov.</p><p>Figs 2, 3</p><p>Diagnosis.</p><p>Similar to Hellwigia glacicaerulea (R. M. Sm.) Senjaya &amp; A. D. Poulsen in having inflorescences of secund cincinni bearing turquoise-blue, dimorphic flowers but differing in its shorter ligule (2–3.5 mm, coriaceous vs. 20–30 mm, marcescent), shorter petiole (7–12 mm vs. 20–30 mm), leaf blades being densely tomentose beneath (vs. shortly tomentose), and tomentose inflorescence rhachis (vs. shortly tomentose).</p><p>Type.</p><p>Cultivated at the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh, Accession Number 20000477 * E, G 57 Tropical Montane House, 15 August 2022, Poulsen 3255 (holo BO; iso CEB, E [E 01530574–5], L, SING). The cultivated plant was grown from rhizomes collected on 26 February 2000, P. Smith &amp; L. Galloway 82, at the same locality and collection date as Argent &amp; al. 00175 (see below): Indonesia • Central Sulawesi, <a href="https://tb.plazi.org/GgServer/search?materialsCitation.longitude=120.166664&amp;materialsCitation.latitude=0.6666667" title="Search Plazi for locations around (long 120.166664/lat 0.6666667)">Mt. Sojol</a>, c. 0°40'N, 120°10'E, c. 1500 m elev .</p><p>Description.</p><p>Terrestrial perennial herb in dense clump. Leafy shoots with up to 13 blades distributed in upper half; pseudostem 60–90 cm long; base to 1.3 cm across, reddish brown; lower sheaths turning pale brown and dry, upper pale mid-green, faintly striate, scattered tomentose, denser near ligule; ligule 2–3.5 mm long, entire (sometimes splitting with age), pubescent, especially towards margin, brownish; petiole 7–12 mm long, canaliculate, tomentose, pale mid-green; lamina narrowly ovate, 14–23 × 2.5–3.4 cm, glabrescent or scattered tomentose above, densely tomentose on midrib and lamina beneath, dark green above, pale beneath, base cuneate to obtuse, margin tomentose near apex, tapering towards apex. Inflorescence terminal to the leafy shoot, erect, unbranched, rhachis shortly tomentose; inflorescence bracts 1–2, 3.5–6 cm long, drying pale brown; flowering part to 6 cm long; rhachis 3.5–4.5 cm long, tomentose; cincinni 14–18, alternate and distichous (secund), congested in upper half of rhachis, cincinnus bracts absent, cincinnus bearing 4–6 flowers, the first functionally female and subsequent flowers functionally male; bracteoles broadly funnel-shaped, telescoping, to 8 mm long at most on proximal cincinni, reducing in size along cincinni and on distal cincinni, deeply split down one side, tomentose, ciliate at margin, faintly greenish white to pale bluish, becoming dry, pale brown, and brittle, lacerating somewhat at anthesis. Flowers pale turquoise-blue. Functionally male flowers c. 20 mm long (excl. pedicel), pedicel 2–5 mm long, pubescent; calyx to 6 mm long, slightly irregularly split at apex; floral tube to 8 mm long, glabrous; dorsal corolla lobe 11–13 × 9 mm (when flattened), cucullate, apex swollen; lateral corolla lobes 10–11 × 7 mm (when flattened), asymmetrical, cucullate, flatter than dorsal one, margin slightly lacerate; labellum 10–12 × 5 mm (when flattened 8 mm wide, ovate), spoon- to boat-shaped, thickly fleshy in center, margin membranous, inrolled, apex rounded; lateral staminodes meeting across inside of corolla tube; stamen 10 × 4 mm, sparsely pubescent on abaxial surface, filament 3–3.5 mm long, canaliculate, anther to 8 × 4 mm, base spurred, sparsely tomentose adaxially, thecae opening by longitudinal slits for c. 4.5 mm from 0.5 mm above base, full of pollen, anther crest 2–3 mm long (above thecae), rounded, margin sparsely ciliate; ovary &lt;1 mm long, empty; epigynous glands 1.5 mm long, at abaxial side of base of style, irregularly fleshy, pale yellow; style and stigma to 4 mm long, not fully developed. Functionally female flowers c. 25 mm long (excl. pedicel), pedicel to 4 mm long when flowering, extending to 7 mm on fruits, sericeous; calyx 8 mm long, tubular, unevenly trilobed, glabrous, white tinged slightly blue; floral tube 3–7 mm long, glabrous; dorsal corolla lobe 10–13 × 7–8 mm (when flattened), cucullate, ± tomentose at apex, apex swollen; lateral corolla lobes 7–13 × 5.5–7 mm (when flattened), asymmetrical, flatter than dorsal one, cucullate, margin slightly lacerate, apex swollen; labellum 9.5–12 × 5 mm, (when flattened 9 mm wide, ovate), boat-shaped, thickly fleshy in center, margin membranous, inrolled, apex rounded; lateral staminodes 2.5 mm long, fleshy, deflexed; stamen 9–12 × 3 mm, fleshy, filament c. 3 mm long, canaliculate, anther 7–8 × 3.5 mm, base spurred, sparsely tomentose adaxially, crest 1–1.5 mm long, rounded, margin sparsely ciliate, thecae ± parallel, empty; ovary 5–7 × 5–5.5 mm, ovoid to ellipsoid with faint longitudinal ridges, trilocular with parietal placentation and many ovules, glabrous, with very few erect hairs at base, shiny, yellow-green; epigynous glands 1.5 mm long, at abaxial side of base of style, irregularly fleshy, pale yellow; style to 16 mm long, white; stigma 2 × 3 mm, club-shaped, ostiole in center abaxially, transverse 2.5 mm, margin ciliate. Fruit immature, globose to ellipsoid, 6 × 4–5 mm, pale yellow (mature fruit expected to be at least twice as large); seeds not seen.</p><p>Distribution and habitat.</p><p>Indonesia, Central Sulawesi, Mt. Sojol, 1500 m elevation. Known only from the type locality and cultivated material from the same population (Fig. 1). This species grows in submontane ridge forest.</p><p>Etymology.</p><p>The epithet means ‘ opal-colored’ from Greek, opallios, an opal.</p><p>Conservation status and preliminary IUCN Red List assessment.</p><p>Only one population has been sampled at Mt. Sojol (Argent et al. 00175; Smith &amp; Galloway 82), and, as the area is protected as a Reserve, the species may therefore be considered as LC (IUCN 2019).</p><p>Additional specimens examined</p><p>(paratypes). Indonesia • Central Sulawesi Province. <a href="https://tb.plazi.org/GgServer/search?materialsCitation.longitude=120.166664&amp;materialsCitation.latitude=0.6666667" title="Search Plazi for locations around (long 120.166664/lat 0.6666667)">Mt. Sojol</a>; c. 0°40'N, 120°10'E; c. 1500 m elev.; 26 February 2000; G. C. G. Argent, C. M. Mendum &amp; Hendrian 00175 (BO n. v., E [E 00103765–66], L [QR code L.4195953]) • from same locality, cultivated RBGE, Acc. No. 20000477, no qualifier (origin as previous), G 66; 30 April 2006; M. F. Newman &amp; J. Leong-Škorničková 1459 (E [E 00228081; spirit E 00830219]) • Acc. No. 20000477 * E, G 57 Tropical Montane House; 29 August 2012; M. F. Newman 2537 (E [E 01378134; spirit E 00412407]) .</p><p>Notes.</p><p>Hellwigia opalina is part of a group of closely related, slender, small-leaved species formerly placed in Alpinia section Myriocrater K. Schum. These species are distinct from the typically robust members of the section and are notable for their icy blue or turquoise flowers. The other species in the group are H. coeruleoviridis (K. Schum.) Senjaya &amp; A. D. Poulsen and H. glacicaerulea (R. M. Sm.) Senjaya &amp; A. D. Poulsen. Hellwigia opalina can most easily be distinguished from both species by its much shorter ligule (2 mm vs. 20–45 mm).</p><p>Monoecism is a common sexual system in Alpinia section Myriocrater, in which the jade gingers of Sulawesi were placed (Burtt and Smith 1972; Smith 1977). The first and, occasionally, the second flower of each cincinnus is functionally female, while the remaining flowers are functionally male (Burtt and Smith 1972). Cultivating the plants allowed us to study both kinds of flowers, leading to a more detailed description of this species.</p></div>	https://treatment.plazi.org/id/52D54EB30D445BD8BE9EB556EC14D694	Public Domain	No known copyright restrictions apply. See Agosti, D., Egloff, W., 2009. Taxonomic information exchange and copyright: the Plazi approach. BMC Research Notes 2009, 2:53 for further explanation.		Pensoft via Plazi	Poulsen, Axel Dalberg;Senjaya, Seni Kurnia;Ardiyani, Marlina;Newman, Mark Fleming	Poulsen, Axel Dalberg, Senjaya, Seni Kurnia, Ardiyani, Marlina, Newman, Mark Fleming (2026): Hellwigia opalina (Zingiberaceae) – a new species of the enigmatic jade gingers of Sulawesi. PhytoKeys 272: 169-180, DOI: 10.3897/phytokeys.272.171221
