| Field notes | Solitary palm: stem 485 cm from base to crownshaft green, glabrous. Diam. at base 6.5 cm, diam. below crownshaft 5.5 cm. Number of internodes 23, basal internode 14 cm long, apical internode 12 cm long. No. of leaves 4 + 1 juvenile. Leafsheath + petiole 90 cm long, trasition hard to measure. Leafsheath encircling the stem for 50 cm thus forming a crownshaft. Crownshaft green, glabrous, largest diam. 7.5 cm. Diam of petiole just below basal pinna 2 x 2 cm. Rachis 160 cm long, green, adaxial side with a prominent mid-ridge, abaxial side rounded. No. ofpinnae 2 x 24. Pinna green, adaxially with prominent veins, abaxially glabrous. Basal 32 x 4 cm central pinna 70 x 8 cm. Apical pinna 38 x 12 cm. Inflorescences female: no. of inflorescences 3 + 1 bud. Young inflorescences at node 18, 19, mature at node 20 and a bud at node 21. Mature inflorescence: prophyll inserted 0.6 cm above the base, 5.2 cm long, brown, splitting up apically, decaying. No. of sterile bracts 4. 1st sterile bract; inserted 0.4 cm above the prophyll, 11 cm long, brown, splitting up apically, decaying. 2nd sterile bract; inserted 5 cm above the 1st sterile bract, 21 cm long, brown, splitting up irregularly to the base. 3rd sterile bract; inserted 4.5 cm above the 2nd sterile bract, 26 cm long, encircling the peduncle for 8 cm, splitting up laterally, left side. The encircling part creamy-white to brown, the rest is brown. 4th sterile bract; inserted 10.5 cm above the 3rd sterile bract, 10 cm long, green to brown, splitting up laterally in both sides. Peduncle 33 cm long, creamy-white, cross-section below basal rachillae circular, 1.3 cm in diam. Rachis 12 cm long, creamy-white. No. of rachillae 18, regularly distributed. Basal rachillae 20.5 cm long, apical rachillae 16 cm long. Flowers regularly distributed throughout the rachillae. Infructescence; prophyll deciduous, inserted 0.9 cm above the base.1st sterile bract; deciduous, inserted 1.7 cm above the base. 2nd sterile bract; deciduous, inserted 3.5 cm above the base. 3rd sterile bract; deciduous, inserted 9.0 cm above the base. 4th sterile bract; deciduous, inserted 20 .0 cm above the base. Peduncle 33 cm long, creamy-white to green. Cross-section below basal rachillae ovate, largest diam. 1.5 cm. Rachis 13 cm long, green. No. of rachillae 16. Basal rachillae 27 cm long, apical rachillae 20 cm long. Fruits regularly distributed, ovate, 0.7 cm long. Calyx persistent on fruit. |
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