Uvaria (Melodorum).
A genus of over 100 species mostly from Asia with some from Africa and Madagascar.
There are three species in Australia with Uvaria leichhardtii in S. E. Queensland.
Features of the Australian species include the following.
They are shrubs or, with support scrambling woody vines (lianas).
Most parts have rust coloured stellate hairs.
Leaves, on a petiole up to 10 cm long can be elliptic ovate or oblong.
Up to nearly 20 cm long and 10 cm wide they have a heart-shaped base.
There are stellate brown hairs along the veins on the lower surface.
Inflorescences are 1 to 3 terminal or leaf opposed flowers.
They are on peduncles up to 2 cm long that have a bract up to 1.5 cm long.
There are stellate hairs on the peduncles and bracts.
The 3 fused sepals over the flower bud split into 3 except at the base.
Sepals can be over 1 cm long and there are brown stellate hairs on the outer surface.
The 6 petals, in 2 whorls can be nearly 3 cm long and almost as wide.
Red or a reddish or orange-brown they have stellate hairs on the outer surface and sometimes the inner.
There are 100 to 200 stamens 2.5 to 5 mm long on a conical receptacle.
The outer ones are shorter and often sterile.
There is an appendage from the connective tissue between the anther sacs.
There are up to 50 carpels 2 to 3 mm long with a few to numerous ovules.
The sometimes large stigmas may be directly attached to the ovary or on a very short style.
There may be hairs on the style and/or the variously shaped stigmas.
The fruit are apocarps (from 1 or more initially easily separated carpels).
They can be dry or moist, almost spherical to ellipsoidal and 2 to 5 cm long.
They may be smooth or have black or reddish-brown hairs.
The few to many brown seeds are flattened.
J.F.
