Ruellia macrantha.
Christmas Pride, native to Brazil is also known as Wild Petunia.
They are small annual sub-shrubs up to 1.8 m high and 0.5 m wide.
There are a few erect soft stems from the base and the crown is rounded.
Stems have short stiff hairs and the nodes have longer soft ones.
There are a few scattered glands.
The leaves are opposite and decussate (in 4 ranks).
The petiole, from 5 mm to 2 cm long has hairs and glands like the stem.
The dark green blades, up to 14 cm long are ovate to lance-shaped.
The tip is pointed, the edge smooth and the base tapers.
There are scattered simple and glandular hairs on the upper surface and on the veins on the lower.
Inflorescences are solitary flowers from the upper leaf axils.
They are on a short to almost no pedicel with narrow bracts up to 3 cm long.
All have hairs and glands.
The calyx, around 2 cm long has a tubular base and 5 narrow lobes with hairs and glands.
The funnel-shaped corolla, up to 8 or 9 cm long has hairs and glands on the outer surface.
The 5 lobes, 2 cm wide and long have short hairs on the edges.
The corolla is magenta, lilac or deep pink except the throat is whitish inside.
There are darker nectar guides (veins) in the throat and on the lobes.
The 4 stamens have the filament bases fused into 2 pairs of different length.
The longer ones are just over 5 mm and the shorter just under.
The 5 mm long ovary has 2 locules with 4 ovules in each.
The 4 cm long style has 2 linear stigma lobes 5 and 3 mm long.
The ovary and style have some hairs.
The elliptical capsules, up to 3 cm long have some hairs.
There are jaculators that eject the seeds.
The flat seeds have hairs and glands on the edge.
J.F.
