| Field notes | Soliatry palm, ca. 9.5 m tall. Stem with basal cone of stiltroots ca. 1 m tall and ca. 75 cm in diam. at ground. No. of stiltroots numerous, estimated to ca. 50 also considering the ones hidden inside, 4.5 cm in diam. and grey from crustaceous lichens, no. lenticels observed. Dbh. of stem 18 cm. Leafscars visible to the cone of stiltroots. Internodal length 15 cm basally and the leafscars here about 2 cm broad. Diam. below crownshaft 18 cm, internodal length here 3 cm and leafscars ca. 3 cm broad. Internodes ca. 1 m below crownshaft beige, leafscars light greyish-brown. Stem slightly ventricose and grey cloloured from crustaceous lichens. No. of leaves 4 plus one juvenile spear shaped leaf, pointing in all directions except straight down giving crown a rounded appearance, leaves fairly straight, little curved apically. Leaf sheath 204 cm, encircling stem for basalmost 145 cm thus forming a crownshaft, this being bluish-green with ferrugenous felt-like covering, furrows running longitudinally are imprented in the lower part from developing buds, largest circumscription of crownshaft ca. 10 cm above the base and 79 cm. Leafsheath apically with chartaceous margin ca. 1 cm broad, brown to black and rolling up, attenuated, one margin meeting another in a reverse V on the petiole. Petiole as measured from tip of this reverse V to the basal most pinnae 16 cm long, rounded in c.s., greyish brown, 6.2 cm in diam. below lowermost pinnae. Rachis 282 cm long shape above with rounded ridge and furruwed on the sides, below rounded, all parts covered with greyish ferrugenous feltation. Pinnae 2 x 25, each splitting up in 5-6 unequally broad pinnulae, nearly in the same way each time, pinnae opposite to subopposite, touching one another dorsally, largest pinnula splitting from margins of pinnae to 92 cm long and 13 cm broad, the intervening usually 3, pinnulae of same length but narrower to 3-5 cm. Pinnulae apically obliquely erose, above shiny dark green, below somewhat dewed to mat light green. Most nerves below prominent and yellowish. Infructescence inserted at 6th and 7th node below crownshaft. Several of the intervening nodes with buds in groups of 3 to 4, of which one and usually the middle ones develop into maturity. Peduncle 40 cm long, visible part rounded in c.s. section green with ferrugenous pubescence. Prophyll inserted at very base, 7 cm long, chartaceous to woody dark brown with ferrugenous pubescence, splitting apically and adaxially. 1st sheathing bract inserted 0.5 m from prophyll, tubular to barrel shaped 28 cm in max. circumscription, grey to dark brown with sparse brown pubescence, splitting apically. 2nd sheathing bract inserted ca. 1 cm from previous one, 19 cm long, tubular to barrel shaped, 22 cm in max. circumscription, chartaceous to thickly coriaceous, visible parts grey to dark brown with sparse brown pubescence, splitting apically. 3rd sheathing bract inserted ca. 6 cm above previous one, 40 cm long, hoodshaped rooting the infructescence, visible parts chartaceous to woody grey to light brown, apically acuminate with a 3 cm long tip, split to 2-5 cm above base adaxially. 4th sheath bract inserted 5 cm above previous one, and identical to this only a little shorter, 37 cm. 5th sheathing bract, inserted 6 cm above identical to previous to ones, 34 cm long. Scar after deciduous, probably non sheathing bract encircling the peduncle 7 cm above 5th sheathing bract. Diam. of peduncle 4 cm below lowermost rachillae. Rachis 41 cm long, green with sparse feragenuous pubescence, bracts subtending rachillae reduced to merely a rim. No. of rachillae 25, basal ones and the ones in the middle nearly of equal length to 40 cm long. Apical most ones shorter min. length being 30 cm. Basic most rachillae flattened and 3 cm broad basally to rounded, apical most rachillae rounded basally and 0.7 cm in diam. Rachillae green with ferrugenuous pubescence. No. of fruits pr. rachillae max. ca. 40, elliptic 2.4 cm long, 1.7 cm in diam. Calyx lobes persistent, fleshy, reddish tunged yellow. Fruit green with dense ferrugenous pubescence. |
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