Diagnostic description ³

Ipomoea ochracea (Lindl.) G. Don, Gen. Hist. 4: 270. 1838.

Fig. 68. A-C

Basionym: Convolvulus ochraceus Lindl.

Slightly woody vine, twining, attaining 5 m in length, with scarce watery latex. Stems cylindrical, slender, pubescent. Leaves alternate; blades simple, 3-10 × 2.5-7.5 cm, ovate, chartaceous, glabrous except for some hairs on the veins, the apex acuminate and usually mucronate, the base cordiform, the margins entire or sinuate; upper and lower surface with the veins slightly prominent, the lower surface usually glaucous; petioles 2-6 cm long, pubescent. Flowers solitary or in double dichasia, axillary; peduncles slightly longer than the petioles; bracts ovate, ca. 1.6 mm long. Calyx green, not accrescent, of 5 subequal sepals, 5-7 mm long, chartaceous, ovate or oblong-ovate, glabrous, punctate; corolla pale yellow, with the base of the tube purple inside, infundibuliform, 3-4 cm long, the limb with 5 shallow, rounded lobes; stamens and stigmas white, not exserted. Capsule ovoid, glabrous, with a thin pericarp, 1.3-1.6 cm long, stramineous, with the sepals persistent, not accrescent at the base; seeds 4 per fruit, 4-5 mm long, black, dull, glabrous.

Phenology: Collected in flower and fruit from December to February.

Status: Exotic, naturalized.

Selected Specimens Examined: Acevedo-Rdgz., P. 2607; 3096; 4099; 5336; 6231; 7718; 10527.

Distribution ⁴

Distribution: Common in southwestern Puerto Rico. Also on St. Croix and St. John; probably native to tropical Africa, widely cultivated throughout the tropics.

Public forest: Guánica, Maricao, and Susúa.

Sources and Credits

1. (c) Forest & Kim Starr, some rights reserved (CC BY), http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Starr_080429-8888_Ipomoea_ochracea.jpg
2. (c) Forest & Kim Starr, some rights reserved (CC BY), https://www.biolib.cz/IMG/GAL/53027.jpg
3. (c) Pedro Acevedo-Rodríguez, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC-SA), http://eol.org/data_objects/28435234
4. (c) Pedro Acevedo-Rodríguez, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC-SA), http://eol.org/data_objects/28435761

More Info

• iNat taxon page
• African Plants - a photo guide
• Biodiversity Heritage Library
• BOLD Systems BIN search
• eFloras.org
• Flora Digital de Portugal
• Flora of North America (beta)
• Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF)
• HOSTS - a Database of the World's Lepidopteran Hostplants
• IPNI (with links to POWO, WFO, and BHL)
• NatureServe Explorer 2.0
• SEINet Symbiota portals
• Tropicos
• USDA PLANTS database
• World Flora Online

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