Triandra Mart., 2021

Martínez-Azorín, Mario, Crespo, Manuel B., Alonso-Vargas, María Ángeles, Crouch, Neil R. & Pinter, Michael, 2021, Triandra pellabergensis (Hyacinthaceae subfam. Urgineoideae), a new genus and species from Pella se Berge, Northern Cape Province, South Africa, Phytotaxa 487 (1), pp. 65-74 : 66-67

Triandra Mart. -Azorín, M.B.Crespo, M.Á.Alonso, N.R. Crouch & M.Pinter gen. nov.

Typus generis: Triandra pellabergensis Mart. -Azorín, M.B.Crespo, M.Á.Alonso, N.R. Crouch & M.Pinter

Diagnosis: Triandra shows a unique combination of characters in Hyacinthaceae : filiform leaves; small, nodding, nocturnal flowers with three stamens; filiform, erect filaments; narrowly subclavate, erect style; erect capsule with withered perianth atop; and ellipsoid, flattened, winged seeds.

Description: Small bulbous geophyte. Bulb hypogeal, solitary. Leaves withered at flowering time, filiform, spreading and somewhat curved. Inflorescence a lax, elongate raceme, with few nodding, nocturnal flowers; bracts small, shorty spurred. Bracteoles absent. Tepals 6, biseriate, free or only very shortly connate at base, narrowly lanceolate, whitish with central longitudinal brown stripe on the abaxial side, strongly reflexed at full anthesis. Stamens 3, associated with the inner tepal whorl; filaments filiform, white, erect and approaching the style at anthesis; anthers yellow, ovate, encircling the style, dehiscing longitudinally along their whole length, with yellow pollen. Ovary pale yellowish-green, ovoid, 3-locular, differentiated to the style. Style white, narrowly subclavate, erect, about as long as ovary. Stigma small. Capsule trilocular, loculicidal, ovoid to subglobose, erect, with remains of perigone circumscissile below and forming an apical cap, valves splitting to the base. Seeds black, flattened, distinctly winged with prominent embryo.

Etymology: The name of the new genus (greek; Tri-: three; Andros, -a: male) refers to the three stamens per flower.