The World Flora Online

Tree to about 20 m; trunk erect with brown bark; crown very leafy and large, the branches terete, erect-spreading, the terminal subterete, striolate, lenticellate-granulate, crisp-tomentulose, the youngest compressed, densely ferruginous-lanate. Stipules geminate, subulate, tomentose, 1.5-2.0 mm long, caducous. Leaves opposite, 25-32 cm long, 2-4-jugate, rarely 3-foliolate, exceptionally unifoliolate; axis 7-18 cm long, ferruginous-tomentose; petiole 5-7 cm long, stout, subterete, almost flat above, striolate below, slightly enlarged at the base; interjuga 2.0-3.5 cm long, subterete, often, angular above, with a pair of small, subulate stipels at the base of each pair, caducous, leaving a rounded scar. Leaflets opposite, sessile or petiolulate; lateral petiolules 0-8 mm long, the terminal 6-15 mm long; blades coriaceous, 9-20 cm long, 3-8 cm wide, ovate-elliptic-oblong, asymmetrically rounded at the base, rarely attenuate-obtuse, attenuate and acute at the apex, double or simply crenate-serrate with acute mucronulate teeth 5-10 mm apart; ferruginous-lanate when young above, glabrate, slightly rugose, green and shining except for the thin, impressed and tomentose medial nerve, the parallel secondary nerves also impressed and conspicuous, the minute reticulum somewhat conspicuous in the mature leaf; permanently and more or less densely rusty-lanuginose beneath, the costa very prominent, subcarinate, slightly striolate, the secondary nerves 22-27 on each side, very prominent, 3.5-7.0 mm apart, parallel, slightly ascending with an angle of divergence 60°-67°, usually ending with a mucronate tooth at the margin, the tertiary transverse nerves conspicuously prominent and joined with the smaller ones into a prominulous and close reticulum concealed by the indumentum or in older leaves very exposed; lower leaflets somewhat smaller and the terminal one broader than the others. Inflorescences cymose paniculate, large, but shorter than the subtending leaves, to about 25 cm long and 12 cm broad when mature, the axis robust, striolate, angular and more or less compressed in the upper part, the peduncles 5-14 cm long, the branches trichotomous or dichotomous, densely lanuginose-ferruginous, angular and striate; ultimate branchlets or peduncles complanate, ferruginous-tomentose. Bracts 3-5 mm long, subulate, bearing crowded, sessile, male flowers, the three bracteoles subulate, hirsutulous, 0.8-3.0 mm long, the medial longer than the lateral. Male flowers usually pentamerous, also hexamerous; buds globose, slightly depressed, crisp-tomentose-ferruginous, 3.5-4.0 mm in diam; calyx when expanded 8-9 mm in diam, 4.0-4.5 mm long, the lobes ovate-acute, 3.0-3.5 × 2.0-2.3 mm, rather thick, densely crisp-tomentose outside and on the margins, subappressed-sericeous mainly on the conspicuous broad medial vein inside; stamens 10 (or 12), the filaments 2.5-3.5 mm long, flexuous-pilose on the lower half, the anthers yellow, elliptic-ovoid, cordate at the base, apiculate at the apex, the surface rugose and scrobiculate, 1.1-1.3 mm long; carpels five (or six) rudimentary, the ovary biovulate, sterile, less than 1 mm (0.7-0.8 mm) long, long-hispid (the bristles 1 mm long, rigid), the style 1.0-1.5 mm long, with hairs only at the base; disc densely tomentose-hispidulous. Female flowers: calyx about 9 mm in diam, the lobes triangular, thick, 3.0 × 2.5-3.0 mm usually all five or six follicles or two or three developed to maturity, ovoid, abruptly retrorsely apiculate, 7-8 mm long, 5 mm broad, and with a curved apiculum 3 mm long, densely tomentose and hispid with bristles 1 mm long; endocarp obovate, abruptly and very acutely apiculate, 1-2-seeded, 6.5-7.0 mm long, 3.5-3.0 mm broad, when dry and open shortly navicular-acuminate. Seeds elliptic-oblong, dark tawny, nitid. The recent observations-comparing old and new collections-indicate that B. inermis has rather large leaves, up to 60 cm long, 1-4-jugate, with very robust rachis, the blades ovate-elliptic or broad-oblong-elliptic, rounded and sessile at base, 15-25 × 6-10 cm, with 20-29 pairs of secondary nerves (in smaller lower leaflets sometimes less, down to 17 pairs); abaxially the lax reticulum is prominent and more or less visible through the thick lanate indument which conceals a prominulous minor venular reticulum; the areoles are ashy-papillose, and adaxially the reticular venation is usually obsolete. Stipules and stipels are simply geminate. The axis and inflorescence branches are remarkably robust, distally dilated and complanate, even ancipital, bearing at the ends compact glomerules of fruits or flowers, mostly presumably bisexual. Usually 6-merous, 5-merous and 7-merous flowers are also frequent, the calyx 4-4.5 mm long, when expanded 89.5 mm diam., and there are twice as many stamens as sepals, but sometimes 13 additional are present; staminal filaments are 3-4 mm long, copiously villous proximally. Follicles are about 7-8 × 4-4.5 mm, with an additional 2.5-3 mm long apiculum, densely hispid; the endocarp is corneous, 6-7 × 3.5-3 mm, elliptic apiculate, when dry and open deeply pot-shaped, often somewhat laterally compressed and with a short indentation and an apiculum at the sutural line on the margin. The recent observations-comparing old and new collections-indicate that B. inermis has rather large leaves, up to 60 cm long, 1-4-jugate, with very robust rachis, the blades ovate-elliptic or broad-oblong-elliptic, rounded and sessile at base, 15-25 × 6-10 cm, with 20-29 pairs of secondary nerves (in smaller lower leaflets sometimes less, down to 17 pairs); abaxially the lax reticulum is prominent and more or less visible through the thick lanate indument which conceals a prominulous minor venular reticulum; the areoles are ashy-papillose, and adaxially the reticular venation is usually obsolete. Stipules and stipels are simply geminate. The axis and inflorescence branches are remarkably robust, distally dilated and complanate, even ancipital, bearing at the ends compact glomerules of fruits or flowers, mostly presumably bisexual. Usually 6-merous, 5-merous and 7-merous flowers are also frequent, the calyx 4-4.5 mm long, when expanded 89.5 mm diam., and there are twice as many stamens as sepals, but sometimes 13 additional are present; staminal filaments are 3-4 mm long, copiously villous proximally. Follicles are about 7-8 × 4-4.5 mm, with an additional 2.5-3 mm long apiculum, densely hispid; the endocarp is corneous, 6-7 × 3.5-3 mm, elliptic apiculate, when dry and open deeply pot-shaped, often somewhat laterally compressed and with a short indentation and an apiculum at the sutural line on the margin.

The recently available collections from Cuzco Department enlarge considerably the geographical area of the species which spreads along the mountain ranges from Huánuco, southeasterly towards northern Cuzco. The still existing gap between the Quillabamba Mountains and Muna (Huanuco), is due to the lack of exploration and collections from the intermediate area. Reexamination of Asplund’s collections from Carpish, described as var. petiolulata, reveals stronger differences with Brunellia inermis (Fig 40, p 96.) Andean mountains of Huanuco in Peru in humid forests, 2600-3200 m altitude. (Fig 40, p 96.) Andean mountains of Huanuco in Peru in humid forests, 2600-3200 m altitude.