RUBIACEAE 



827 



1. Lasianthus japonicus Miq. Mcphitidia japonica 



(Miq.) Nakai Ruri-mi-no-ki. Evergreen shrub with 



slender, elongate glabrous or slightly appressed-pilose branches; 

 leaves chartaceous, narrowly oblong or broadly oblanceolate, 

 8-15 cm. long, 2-4 cm. wide, caudate-acuminate, acute to ob- 



^se at base, glabrous above, nearly glabrous to sparingly 

 appressed-pilose beneath, the lateral nerves spreading and 

 arcuate above, the petioles about I cm. long; flowers few in 

 leaf -axils, nearly sessile, white; calyx short, the limb about 1 

 mm. long, short-toothed; fruit globose, dark blue, about 4 mm. 



across. Woods in low mountains; Honshu (Izu Prov. and 



westw.), Shikoku, Kyushu. Ryukyus, Formosa, and s. 



China. 



2. Lasianthus satsumensis Matsum. Mephitidia satsu- 

 mensis (Matsum.) Nakai; L. japonicus var. satsumensis (Mat- 

 sum.) Makino Satsuma-ruri-mi-no-ki. Closely resem- 

 bles the preceding species; branches slighdy pilose with 

 ascending brownish hairs; leaves 8-10 cm. long, caudate-acumi- 

 nate, nearly glabrous or thinly pilose on nerves above, with 

 spreading brownish hairs beneath especially on nerves, the 

 petioles spreading-pilose, about 1 cm. long; flowers few in leaf- 

 axils, nearly sessile; calyx short, the limb about 1 mm. long, 

 with depressed teeth; fruit globose, about 4 mm. across, dark 

 blue. Woods in low mountains; Honshu (Kii Prov.), Shi- 

 koku, Kyushu. 



3. Lasianthus tashiroi Matsum. Mephitidia tashiroi 

 (Matsum.) Nakai Ryukyu-ruri-mi-no-ki, Miyama-ruri- 



Mi-No-Ki. Resembles the preceding; branches with scattered 

 appressed short pubescence while young, or glabrous; leaves 

 firmly chartaceous, oblong or ovate-oblong, sometimes broadly 

 oblanceolate, 6-12 cm. long, 2-4 cm. wide, caudate-acuminate, 

 subacute at base, glabrous and lustrous on upper side, thinly 

 appressed-hairy on nerves beneath, die petioles about 1 cm. 

 long; flowers white, 6-7 mm. long, few in leaf-axils, nearly 

 sessile; calyx-teeth longer than to as long as the limb of calyx, 

 suberect, narrowly deltoid, subacute; corolla 6-7 mm. long, 

 glabrous, the lobes 5, ovate, about half as long as the tube, 

 white-pubescent inside; anthers about half as long as the 



corolla-lobes; fruit globose, about 4 mm. across. Kyushu 



(Yakushima). Ryukyus, Formosa, Hainan Island, and 



Philippines. 



4. Lasianthus tawadae Ohwi. L. tashiroi var. pubes- 

 cens Matsum.; Mephitidia tashiroi var. pubescens (Matsum.) 



Nakai Ke-hada-ruri-mi-no-ki, Ke-miyama-ruri-mi-no-ki. 



Closely resembles the preceding; young branches densely as- 

 cending yellow-brown pubescent; leaves chartaceous, oblong to 

 narrowly so, or obovate-oblong, 6-10 cm. long, l-A cm. wide, 

 caudate-acuminate, glabrous above, densely spreading yellow- 

 brown pubescent beneath, especially on nerves, the lateral 

 nen'es obliquely spreading, arcuate, the pedoles yellow-brown 

 pubescent, 5-8 mm. long; flowers few, in leaf-axils, sessile, 

 densely brownish yellow hairy; calyx short, the lobes or teeth 

 linear-deltoid, 2.5-3 mm. long, acute; fruit globose, about 4 

 mm. across. Kyushu (Yakushima) . Ryukyus. 



12. DAMNACANTHUS Gaertn. f. Akidoshi Zoku 



Evergreen much-branched frequendy spinose shrubs; leaves opposite, coriaceous, ovate, subsessile; flowers rather small, 4- 

 merous, white, 1 or 2 in leaf -axils, short-pedicellate, with minute bracteoles at base; calyx small, the limb 4- or 5-toothed, the teeth 

 persistent; corolla infundibuliform, the lobes 4(-5), valvate in bud; ovary 2- to 4-locular; style slender, filiform, the stigma 2- to 

 4-lobed; ovules solitary in each locule; drupe 1- to 4-stoned. Few species, in e. Asia and Bengal. 



lA. Spines 1-3 mm. long or nearly absent, not longer than the petioles; roots moniliform; leaves 8-13 cm. long \. D. macrophylUis 



IB. Spines 1-2 cm. long; root not moniliform; leaves 1-5 cm., rarely to 6.5 cm. long. 



2A. Spines about 1 cm. long, Yn-Yi as long as the leaves 2. D. major 



2B. Spines 1-2 cm. long, as long as to half as long as the leaves 3. £>. indicus 



1. Damnacanthus macrophyllus Sieb. ex Miq. D. ma- 

 jor var. stibmitis Maxim, ex Regel; D. major var. macrophyllus 

 (Sieb.) Maxim.; D. indicus var. macrophyllus (Sieb.) Ma- 

 kino Oba-juzune-no-ki, Oba-no-aridoshi. Roots mo- 

 niliform; plant glabrous or minutely puberulous on young 

 parts, the branches grayish; leaves rather thin, lustrous, elliptic, 

 ovate-ellipdc, or oblong, 3-8 cm. long, 1.5-4 cm. wide, short- 

 acuminate, rounded at base, glabrous, spines absent or 1-3 

 mm. long; flowers 1 or 2 in leaf-axils, the pedicels 2-3 mm. 

 long; calyx-teeth short, acuminate, about 1 mm. long; corolla 

 white; fruit globose, red, 5-6 mm. across. Shikoku, Kyu- 

 shu. 



Var. giganteus (Makino) Koidz. D. indicus var. giganteus 



Makino; D. giganteus (Makino) Nakai. Nabaga-juzune- 



No-Ki. Leaves broadly lanceolate or narrowly oblong, 5-13 



cm. long, long-acuminate, acute at base. Honshu (Mikawa 



Prov. and westw.), Shikoku, Kyushu. 



Var. parvispinis (Koidz.) Takah. D. major var. parvi- 



spinis Koidz.; D. moniliformis Koidz.; D. minutispinis 

 Koidz.; D. major var. minutispinis Koidz.; D. major var. 

 moniliformis (Koidz.) Hara Maruba-juzune-no-ki. 



Leaves smaller, broadly ovate-rotundate, rounded at base. 



Honshu (Kinki Distr. and westw.), Kyushu. 



2. Damnacanthus major Sieb. & Zucc. D. indicus var. 

 major (Sieb. & Zucc.) Makino; D. indicus var. latifolius Nakai 



JuzuNE-No-Ki. Much-branched shrub, sometimes with 



thickened roots, die branches minutely puberulent, grayish; 

 leaves somewhat coriaceous, lustrous, short-petiolate, ovate or 

 broadly so, 1.5-4 cm. long, 1-2 cm. wide, acute to short-acumi- 

 nate, rounded or very obtuse at base, glabrescent, the spines 

 about 1 cm. long; flowers 1 or 2 in leaf-axils, short-pedicelled; 

 calyx short, the teeth narrowly deltoid, 1.5-2 mm. long; corolla 

 white, 15-18 mm. long, the lobes short, about 4 mm. long; 

 fruit red, globose, about 5 mm. across. May. Woods; Hon- 

 shu (ne. Kanto Distr. and westw.), Shikoku, Kyushu; vari- 

 able. 



Var. parvifoHus Koidz. Koba-no-nise-juzune-no-ki. 



Leaves smaller, 1-3.5 cm. long. Honshu (Izu Prov. and 



westw.), Kyushu. Ryukyus and s. Korea. 



Var. lancifolius (Makino) Ohwi. D. indicus var. lana- 



folius Makino; D. lancifolius (Makino) Koidz. Hosoba- 



NisE-juzuNE-No-Ki. Lcavcs broadly lanceolate, 3-6.5 cm. 



