Philodendron sagittifolium Liebm.

Usually hemiepiphytic, rarely terrestrial or epilithic; stem appressed-climbing, parchment-white, sap turning blackish, slimy; internodes usually terete, weakly angular, sometimes obscurely flattened on one side or closely and acutely ribbed, semiglossy to matte, 1-20 cm long, 1.5 - 4 cm diam., dark green, becoming usually gray-green to brown, sometimes pale yellow-green, epidermis somewhat ridged ("wrinkled"), sometimes fissured transversely; roots reddish brown, 6 - 10 mm long, 3 - 5 mm diam., arising from and along the node on one side; cataphylls 18 - 39 cm long, usually weakly 1-ribbed, sometimes unribbed or weakly to sharply 2-ribbed or sharply 1-ribbed (ribs to 1 cm high), soft, green, sometimes reddish to pinkish, sometimes sparsely green-spotted, purple-maroon or darker striate near base, drying reddish brown, margins sometimes prominently and thinly raised, usually soon deciduous, rarely persisting as a rotting mass, rounded at apex. LEAVES: Petioles 20-65(91) cm long, 3-15 mm diam., usually subterete, moderately spongy to firm, medium green, drying greenish brown, obtusely flattened, usually obtusely and narrowly sulcate, rarely obtusely and broadly sulcate adaxially, surface minutely and densely short purple- or occasionally white-striate, sometimes dark green or violet-purple blotched, sometimes smooth to irregularly ribbed and folded; sheath subtending an inflorescence, 5÷8 cm long; blades ovate to ovate-triangular, semiglossy, moderately coriaceous, weakly to moderately bicolorous, acuminate to narrowly acuminate, sometimes short-acuminate at apex, prominently cordate to ± sagittate at base, 30÷72 cm long, 15÷39 cm wide (1.85-2 times longer than wide), (0.6÷1.6 limes longer than petiole), margins somewhat hyaline, weakly revolute, upper surface medium green, drying brownish green to greenish brown, semiglossy, lower surface pale yellow-green, sometimes reddish, drying usually reddish brown, sometimes yellowish brown, weakly glossy to matte; anterior lobe 24÷61 cm long, 13-34.5 cm wide (2÷5.1(5.5÷6.4) times longer than posterior lobes); posterior lobes usually narrowly rounded, 6-20.5 cm long, 5-17.6 cm wide; sinus ± V-shaped to almost closed, 6÷15 cm deep; midrib flat to weakly raised, paler than surface, drying broadly raised and ± concolorous above, convex to narrowly raised, sometimes maroon-spotted or with white flecks, concolorous to darker than surface, drying broadly raised and reddish below; basal veins 3-5(6) per side, with 0÷1(2) free to base, third and higher order veins sometimes coalesced 2.5÷4.5 cm, a few additional veins sometimes coalesced to 6.5 cm; posterior rib not at all naked or only briefly so; primary lateral veins 4÷9 per side, departing midrib al a 60 - 70º angle, weakly curved to the margins, but usually turned prominently up just before the margin, rather prominently downtumed just before the midrib, round-raised to flat to obtusely sunken and paler than surface above, convex, concolorous to darker than surface below; interprimary veins weakly sunken, concolorous above, flat, darker than surface below; minor veins weakly visible below, arising from both the midrib and primary lateral veins, drying moderately prominent, weakly undulate, alternating with dark, mostly contiguous secretory ducts. INFLORESCENCES erect, 1-3 per axil; peduncle 4-15 cm long, 1.6-1.8 cm diam., somewhat flattened to terete, green, sometimes tinged reddish, drying greenish, densely short and broad striate; spathe 8-22 cm long, 2-3 cm diam. (0.8-2.2 times lunger than peduncle), weakly to obscurely constricted above the tube, semiglossy, usually green, sometimes plum-red, often purple-spotted, densely short pale lineate throughout, weakly so near apex, blunt to narrowly cuspidate-acuminate to prominently acuminate, frequently tinged purplish violet at base; spathe blade green to pale yellow-green, 8 -11 cm long (opening 3-4.3 cm wide, sometimes opening to near the base), greenish white, weakly tinged red-purple in throat to pale yellow-green or white inside, sometimes reddish throughout in age; resin canals appearing as continuous lines, red-purple to orange in color, spathe tube green, sometimes moderately to heavily tinged red-purple to red (B & K red-purple 3/7.5), with sparse, dark purplish spots (mostly medially) throughout outside, 4 - 7 cm long, 2.5 - 3.5 cm diam., red to reddish purple (B & K red-purple 3/7.5), white striate inside; spadix stipitate to 7 mm long; tapered toward apex, (8)9 - 16 cm long, broadest below the middle or near the base, usually protruding somewhat forward at anthesis but not curved; npistillate portion pale green (anthesis) to greenish white to yellow-green (post-anthesis), uniformly wide throughout or weakly tapered toward both ends, 2.5 - 6.2 cm long in front, 2-A.7 cm long in back, 1-1.2 cm diam. at apex, 1.1-1.7(2.1) cm diam. at middle, 1.1÷1.7 cm wide at base; slaminate portion 6.3 - 10.3(13) cm long; fertile staminate portion usually creamy white, sometimes pale green to pinkish, 9-13 mm diam. at base, 11-13 mm diam. at middle, 8 - 10 mm diam. ca. 1 cm from apex, broadest at base or middle, about as broad as the pistillate and sterile portions; sterile staminate portion often broader than the pistillate portion, white, (0.9-1)1.2-1.9 cm diam.; pistils (0.9)1.8-4.4 mm long, (0.9)1.3-2.3 mm diam.; ovary 6 - 9-locular, 1 - 1.7(3) mm long, 1.3 - 2.3 mm diam., with sub-basal placentalion; locules 1-1.7(3) mm long, 0.2-0.4 mm diam.; ovule sac (0.6)0.8-1.2 mm long; ovules usually 2-4, rarely 5 - 8 per locule, 1-seriate (2-seriate, if 4 or more ovules), usually contained within translucent, gelatinous ovule sac, sometimes contained within gelatinous matrix (no true envelope), 0.1 - 0.5 mm long, usually longer than funicle; funicle 0.1 - 0.3 mm long (can be pulled free to base), sometimes adnate to lower part of partition, style (0.4)0.6-0.8 mm long, (0.8)1.2-1.6 mm diam., similar to style type B; style apex flat to sloping; stigma discoid or subdiscoid. truncate, (0.7)1-1.5 mm diam., (0.1)0.3-0.5 mm high, covering entire style apex, sometimes shallowly depressed at middle; the androecium truncate, prismatic, oblong, margins irregularly 4-6-sided to weakly ovate, ca. 1 mm long, 1.6-2 mm diam. at apex; thecae oblong, 0.4÷0.6 mm wide, ± parallel to one another, sometimes contiguous; sterile staminate flowers blunt, irregularly 4-6-sided, sometimes clavate or prismatic, 1.4 - 2.1 mm long, 1.4÷2 mm wide. INFRUCTESCENCE pink, green at base with reddish spots outside; berries pale yellowish, rarely orange, with stigmas reddish brown, 7 mm long; seeds 2 - 3 per locule, drying pale brown to tannish brown, narrowly ellipsoid to oblong-ellipsoid, 1.4-2 mm long, 0.7-0.9 mm diam., with faint striations.