| Field notes | Quichua: "Quirihua". A solitary tree on terra firme. The base with a cone of adventitious roots, 130 cm high and 60 cm wide, each root spiny to 5 cm in diam. Trunk 10 m long, 12 cm in diam at the base, 11 cm in diam at the top. Crownshaft 120 cm x 10-14 cm, green. Leaves 6; petiole 20 x 3.5 cm, Channeled at the base, round near the blade, blade 250 x 180 cm, with 36 pinnae on each side, these simple (not fanshaped) and the blade 2-dimensional. Inflorescences many, inserted several at each of the 5 or 6 upper nodes below the crownshaft, when expanded with the bracts persisting, from a very short rachis 4 sausage like branches to 15 cm x 5 cm (immature) with hairy fruits. Uses: The trunk is used for house construction, as poles in the corner or support below the floor. The trunk may be split up to make planks for floors or walls. The tree is not so much appreciated because its collecting is often connected with itching from the many small brown hairs covering inflorescence, fruits and young leaves. |
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