Geranium mascatense Boissier, Diagn. Pl. Orient.

Hurrah, Imtiyaz A., Shukla, Aparna R. & Wagh, Vijay V., 2023, Occurrence of Geranium mascatense (Geraniaceae) in India and the speculations about its global distribution, Phytotaxa 598 (3), pp. 206-218 : 207

Geranium mascatense Boissier, Diagn. Pl. Orient. ser. 1, 1:59. 1843.

TYPE:— OMAN, Al Batinah, monte Gebel Akader roy. de Mascate, 23°10′N, 57°25′E, P.M. Aucher Eloy 4303 (lectotype: G! designated by Schönbeck-Temesy, 1970:34; isolectotypes: BM, FI, K)

( Figs. 1–3 , 5 )

Herbaceous, erect, annual, 15–35 cm long. Taproot with many secondary roots. Stem with dense, retrorse, curved, uncinate ca. 0.5 mm long eglandular hairs. Stipule deltoid with blunt apex/obtuse, with sparse eglandular hairs on abaxial surface, glabrous on adaxial surface, margins with cilia 0.1–0.4 mm long. Leaf lower cauline leaves alternate, upper opposite, sometimes whorled (3–4 leaves); petiole 2–11 mm long, with 0.1–0.4 mm long, dense, retrose, uncinate, curved eglandular hairs; lamina 1.7–5.0 × 2.3–6.0 cm, pentagonal, palmatipartite, ratio of main sinus length/middle segment length (0.5–0.7), segments 5, rhombic-obtrullate, middle segment width at base 3–9 mm, no. of lobes 9–17, longer than broad, acute and diverging, ratio of 2 nd sinus length/middle segment length 0.18–0.27, abaxially with dense woolly interwoven soft curved uncinate eglandular hairs mostly along veins, adaxially with shorter serecious eglandular hairs and long flat, pleuricellular, 0.7–1.2 mm long scattered, papillose, eglandular hairs. Inflorescence cyme, cymules dichasial at lower nodes and monochasial at upper nodes, peduncles absent, (1-) 2 or 3 umbelled pedicilate flowers; pedicels 7–20 mm long, with dense, retrorse, uncinate, 0.1–0.5 mm long, eglandular hairs. Flowers actinomorphic and cleistogamous. Sepals 4.0–5.9 × 1.3–2.7 mm long, ovate, mucro 0.3–1.0 mm long and hairy, abaxially with cottony interwoven eglandular hairs, adaxially glabrous, margins not uniformly ciliate. Petals not found. Stamens 5 or 10; filaments 1.7–2.0 × 0.3–0.4 mm, triangular at base abruptly narrowing into a long apex, both surfaces glabrous, margins without cilia. Fruits 1.1–1.6 cm long; mericarp 2.8–3.5 mm long, beaked at apex, margins united or overlapping, 4–6 ribs, separated by 0.2–0.5 mm wide deep furrows, laterally connected, bearing <0.1 mm long eglandular hairs; rostrum 9–13 mm long, twinning, covered with ca. 0.2 mm long, upwardly bent eglandular hairs, without narrow apex; stigmatic remains ca. 0.5 mm; seeds 1.6–2.0 mm long.

Specimens examined:— INDIA. Maharashtra: Poona district, Purandhar, 29 December 1956, H. Santapau S. J., 21794 (BLAT!); Purandhar, Vazirgadh fort, 29 December 1956, H. Santapau S. J. 21781 (BLAT!); Purandhar fort, 1164 m, 18.2828°N, 73.9738°E, 05 December 2021, I. A. Hurrah, A. Gupta & A. Mishra 336953, 336954, 336955 ( LWG!).

Figures

FIGURE 1. A. Habit; B. Leaf outline of G. ocellatum; C. Habit; D. Leaf outline of G. mascatense.

FIGURE 2.A. Mericarp; C. Seeds; E. Leaf lobe; G. Stipule; I. Indumentum of leaf surface of G. ocellatum; B. Mericarp; D. Seeds; F. Leaf lobe; H. Stipule; J. Indumentum of leaf Surface of G. mascatense.

FIGURE 3. A. Habit; B. Flower; C. Fruit; D. Staminal filament; E. Sepal; F. Ventral view of sepal; G. Stipule; H. Leaf; I. Indumentum of leaf surface of G. mascatense.

FIGURE 5. A. Dorsal view of mericarp of G. ocellatum; B. Dorsal view of mericarp of G. mascatense; C. Details of the mericarp surface of G. ocellatum; D. Detail of the mericarp of G. mascatense.