Description

Key Characters:

Growth Form: Small shrubs (12–)20–40 cm tall.

Stems: Stems glabrous, densely branched, the branches erect–ascending, brittle, the basal stems with dark gray, longitudinally fissured bark, the leafy branches 0.6–1 mm diam. longitudinally furrowed, green or red–tinted, the internodes 6–30 mm long.

Roots:

Leaves: Leaves simple. Opposite and decussate (pairs of leaves alternating 90 degrees between nodes) or the pairs sometimes spirally arranged. Blades elliptic, broadly elliptic, broadly ovate–elliptic, broadly ovate, or rarely suborbicular, (5–) 10–20 x (4–)6–14 mm. Apex rounded or retuse, often mucronulate. Base the base subcordate, less commonly truncate or rounded. Surfaces glabrous, drying dull, pale green, slightly discolorous, Upper surfacely faintly white-punctate, often with reddish tint marginally Lower surfacely grayish green, subcoriaceous or coriaceous. Margins entire, usually slight involute. Lateral veins 5–7 pairs, with 3–4 pairs arising subpalmately from the base, the venation obscure or secondary (rarely tertiary) veins visible on both surfaces. Short–petiolate or sub–sessile, petioles 0.5–1.5 x 0.5 mm, glabrous. Stipules broadly triangular or obtuse and rounded, 0.5–1 x 1–2 mm, externally glabrous, internally villosulous, occasionally bifid, the margin brown, erose, with scattered dark colleters.

Flowers: Flowers in cyathia solitary and terminal at branch tips, the peduncles 1–1.5 mm long, glabrous, the involucre campanulate, 2–3 mm long, 2– 2.5 mm diam. internally densely villous, externally glabrous, green or dark purple, the glands (4–)5, glabrous, purple, each with a broadly obovate to subcircular, obtuse, petaloid white appendage 0.7– 1.5 mm long, 1.5–2.6 mm wide, entire or irregularly sinuate or lacerate. Flowers unisexual and highly reduced. Pistillate flowers solitary, on a gynophore; staminate flowers in 5 groups or cymules, each with 1 to several flowers. Calyx (sepals) absent. Corolla (petals) absent. Male flower reduced to a single stamen, with an articulation at junction of pedicel and filament, subtended by slender bracteoles. Stamens 0.6–0.7 mm long, the anthers dark purple, bilobed. Ovary superior, initially erect, glabrous or rarely tomentellous; styles bifid for 4/3 of their length, dark purple, thickened.

Fruit: Capsules 3–angled; 2.5–2.8 mm long; 2.3–3 mm diam. broadly ovoid; glabrous; green with margins and apex purple–red; recurved on a glabrous gynophore to 2 mm long; the styles 0.5–0.7 mm long. Seeds 2.2–2.3 mm long; 1.3–1.5 mm diam. seed coat brownish white; smooth.

Ploidy:

Habitat: The new species occurs most commonly on north-facing; steep; narrow ridge crests and outcrops; less commonly on steep rocky slopes and the upper portions of basalt cliffs. It is generally restricted to windswept areas where it occurs in small populations in relictual native lowland or montane diverse mesic forest and shrubland.

Elevation Range: 270–1,100 m.