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Araceae
Philodendron silverstonei Croat
SUMMARY
Creeping or climbing vine; stems with colourless sap oxidising orange, rooting at the nodes; internodes short, 0.5– 3 cm long, to 6 cm diam., drying yellow-brown; cataphylls deciduous. Leaves erect; petiole subterete, 85–109 cm long, 1–1.5 cm diam. at the apex; blade ovate-sagittate, widest at level of petiole insertion and tapering towards the apex, short-acuminate at apex, deeply lobed at base, 58–101 cm long, 34–65 cm wide, 1.3–1.7 × longer than wide, 0.8–1 × as long as petiole, matte and drying dark olive-green; posterior lobes 24–40 cm long, 15–23 cm wide, curving inwards; sinus spathulate, 20–31 cm deep, 12–18 cm wide; midrib broad-flattened above, convex below, drying concolorous above, lighter than surface below; primary lateral veins 13–14 pairs, arising at 60–75° angle, slightly raised above and below; minor veins inconspicuous; basal veins 10–12 pairs, the first 2–4 pairs free to the base and the others branching on both sides of the posterior rib; posterior rib thick, free for 3–8 cm and projecting in a straight line into the centre of the posterior lobe. Inflorescences 1–5 per axil; peduncle 21–33 cm long, c. 8 mm diam., drying blackened; spathe 20–22 cm long, blade 3.5–7 cm wide, tube 3.5–4.5 cm diam., blade green outside, white inside, sometimes with orange longitudinal stripes, tube green outside, red or dark red-violet inside; spadix 18–21 cm long, 1.2–1.5 cm wide, white in male and sterile sections, light green in female section; pistils 1.6–1.8 mm long, 1–1.1 mm diam., style with a prominent central dome, stigma 1.6–1.8 mm diam., ovary 4–5-locular, locules 1-ovulate; ovules contained within a mucilaginous, very sticky, transparent sac, 0.8–1 mm long, the ovule proper oblong, c. 0.5 mm long, with a glandular funicle 0.3-0.4 mm long.