PURPUREOVIRIDIS ssp. PURPUREOVIRIDIS

Distribution : China (western Sichuan, north-western Yunnan), forests or forest margins, grassland near streams, stony places, grassy slopes, 2500 - 4100 m.

Description (according to H. Ohba in IHSP, 2003) :

Gynodioecious, 15 - 40 cm tall.

Rhizomes cylindrical, 1.5 - 2.5 cm in diameter.

Flowering stems 1 - 2, 4 – 6 mm in diameter, often purplish, densely papillate.

Leaves approximate throughout, sessile, spreading to ascending, narrowly oblong to lanceolate, 2.5 - 4 'x 0.3 – 1.2 cm, papillate, tip acute to obtuse, base truncate to slightly auriculate, margin sparsely dentate or serrate.

Inflorescences compactly 80- to 200-flowered, semiglobose, 4 - 5 x 5 - 8 cm in diameter, pedicels 3 - 6 mm, densely papillate.

Flowers 4 - 5 mm (hermaphrodite) or 2 - 3 mm (female) in diameter, calyx 2.8 - 3.5 mm, papillate outside, sepals subulate to subulate-Ianceolate (hermaphrodite) or linear to narrowly oblong (female), 2.2 – 2.6 x 0.5 - 0.9 mm, ascending to spreading or reflexed (hermaphrodite) or suberect (female), petals pale yellow-green, linear-spatulate to narrowly oblong-spatulate (hermaphrodite) or subulate to narrowly triangular (female), 3.8 - 4.5 mm (hermaphrodite) or 1 – 1.4 mm (female), spreading (hermaphrodite) or suberect (female), stamens longer than the petals, anthers purplish-red.