Buddleja sphaerocalyx
Encyclopedia
Buddleja sphaerocalyx is a species endemic to Madagascar
Madagascar
The Republic of Madagascar is an island country located in the Indian Ocean off the southeastern coast of Africa...

, where it grows in moist forests, principally along river banks, at altitudes of 300 - 2,200 m. . The species was named and described in 1887 by Baker
John Gilbert Baker
John Gilbert Baker was an English botanist.Baker was born in Guisborough, the son of John and Mary Baker and educated at Quaker schools in Ackworth and York....

.

Description

B. sphaerocalyx is a sarmentose
Sarmentose
A sarmentose is a type of plant which has long slender stolons, or "runners". An example of sarmentose is the strawberry....

 shrub 2 - 3 m in height, the branchlets obscurely quadrangular, bearing opposite, connate-perfoliate
Leaf shape
In botany, leaf shape is characterised with the following terms :* Acicular : Slender and pointed, needle-like* Acuminate : Tapering to a long point...

 leaves, 10- 21 cm long by 3.0 - 11 cm wide, narrowly ovate
Leaf shape
In botany, leaf shape is characterised with the following terms :* Acicular : Slender and pointed, needle-like* Acuminate : Tapering to a long point...

, acuminate
Leaf shape
In botany, leaf shape is characterised with the following terms :* Acicular : Slender and pointed, needle-like* Acuminate : Tapering to a long point...

 at the apex, and narrowing abruptly at the base; the margins irregularly crenate - dentate
Leaf shape
In botany, leaf shape is characterised with the following terms :* Acicular : Slender and pointed, needle-like* Acuminate : Tapering to a long point...

. The white inflorescence
Inflorescence
An inflorescence is a group or cluster of flowers arranged on a stem that is composed of a main branch or a complicated arrangement of branches. Strictly, it is the part of the shoot of seed plants where flowers are formed and which is accordingly modified...

s comprise solitary axillary flowers 4 - 10 cm long by 1.5 - 6 cm wide; the corollas 8.5 - 20 mm long.

B. sphaerocalyx is closely allied to B. axillaris
Buddleja axillaris
Buddleja axillaris is a shrub endemic to Madagascar, the Comoro Islands, and Tanzania, growing in forests at elevations of 300 - 1400 m. The species was first named and described by Willdenow in 1827 -Description:...

 and B. cuspidata
Buddleja cuspidata
Buddleja cuspidata is a species endemic to Madagascar, where it grows along river banks. The species was first named and described by Baker in 1895 -Description:...

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