Farsetia undulicarpa Jonsell

Cruciferae, Bengt Jonsell (University of Stockholm). Flora of Tropical East Africa. 1982

Habit

Shrub, ± scandent, up to 2 m. high, with numerous long spreading branches.

Stem

Old stems with grey- to light brown bark; young parts green to greyish green, densely hairy.

Leaves

Leaves ± congested on younger parts of shoots, particularly on short side branches (in elongate main branches looser but probably soon falling off), lanceolate to narrowly linear and sometimes inrolled, 20–95 mm. long, 1–16 mm. broad, acute, attenuate into an indistinct petiole.

Inflorescences

Racemes terminating numerous side branches, ± corymbose, with 10–25 flowers on 5–9 mm. long pedicels; fruiting racemes up to 15 cm. long, with 6–11 mm. long pedicels.

Calyx

Sepals 8.5–11 mm. long.

Corolla

Petals pink to bright purple with deep purple veins, not markedly clawed, 15–20 mm. long, 2.5–3.5 mm. broad, tapered towards an obtuse apex.

Filaments

Filaments nearly linear, 1-nerved.

Nectaries

Each lateral stamen surrounded at base by a horseshoe-shaped nectary.

Pistil

Ovary 4.5–5.5 mm. long, hairy all round; style thick, very short; stigma broadly conoidal, bifid, 1–1.5 mm. long.

Fruits

Siliqua broadly linear, 24–32 mm. long, 3.2–4.2 mm. broad, when fully ripe torulose to strongly transversely undulate; valves hairy; septum with predominant transverse or obliquely transverse fibres and large hyaline areas (some reaching from replum to midnerve); style (including stigma) 1.5–2 mm., subulate.

Seeds

Seeds (excluding wing) 2.2–2.5 mm. across; wing ± 1 mm. broad.

Figures

Fig. 11/2, p. 32.

Habitat

Tarchonanthus bushland and wooded grassland, on volcanic soils; 1750–2300 m.

Distribution

K3 K6 T2 not known elsewhere