Asterostigma Fisch. & C.A.Mey.

HABIT : seasonally dormant herbs. Stem tuberous, depressed-globose. LEAF : solitary, erect; PETIOLE : smooth, usually maculated in a marbled pattern, resembling snake skin, leaf sheath short and usually inconspicuous; LEAF BLADE : subcordate to cordate in outline, pinnatipartite, higher order venation reticulate. INFLORESCENCE : 1-4, rarely one of them aborted in a leafy structure, appearing before or with leaves, erect at anthesis, erect or pendant in fruit. PEDUNCLE : usually longer than half of petiole length, sometimes longer than the entire petiole. SPATHE : erect, convolute at base, not constricted to slightly constricted at middle. SPADIX : completely free or adnate to half of the female spadix, flowers congested to laxly flowered, male portion without a conspicuous sterile zone. FLOWERS : diclinous, perigone absent; male flowers in sessile to shortly pedicelled synandria 3-5-andric, thecae subglobose to globose, dehiscing by a transversal slit, connective flattened to convex; pollen grain inapertured, ellipsoid, psilate; female flowers surrounded by a row of 4-8 staminodes, usually flattened, free to connate; ovary ovoid to depressed-globose, 3-5 locular, locules uniovulated, ovules anatropous, funicles short, placentation axile to sub-basal, style often distinct, stigma conspicuously 2-5 lobed, usually star-shaped or cross-shaped, lobes entire to bifid at apex. INFRUCTESCENCE : with persistent spathe; berry moderately fleshy to spongy, 3-5 lobed, white to yellowish, usually with purple-speckled. SEED : ellipsoid to oblong, testasmooth, endosperm copious.