Araceae
Alocasia portei Schott
SUMMARY
Massive arborescent pachycaul to 6 m tall; stem erect, to ea. 40 cm diam. At base (thickening with age), distally to ea. 15 cm diam., older parts developing tessellated 'bark'; leaves several together, more or less erect; petiole to ea. 1.5 m long, yellowish to dark green mottled chocolate, sheathing in the lower third; blade sagittate and deeply pinnatifid, dark green, coriaceous; anterior lobe to ea. 1.5 m long, with up to 10 linear-lanceolate roundtipped segments each with a primary lateral vein diverging from the anterior costa at ea 80-90°; margins strongly crispate; primary veins prominent below, tinged purple-brown or yellowish, with conspicuous axillary glands on abaxial side; secondary venation flush, arising from primary at ea. 80-90° and interspersed at ea. 2-3 cm intervals with abaxially slightly prominent stronger veins (but nearer in size to secondary than primary) with glands in their axils; inflorescences in numerous pairs clustered in the centre of the leaf crown, subtended by conspicuous brown-mottled lanceolate cataphylls; peduncle to ea. 30 cm long; spathe to 40 cm long; lower part subcylindric, dark brownish green, ea. 5 cm long; limb linear oblonglanceolate, at first erect and canoe-shaped and cucullate, thence reflexed at the constriction, pale brownish, mottled and streaked chocolate brown, membranous; spadix somewhat shorter than the spathe, to 32 cm long; female zone sessile, ea. 4 cm long x 1.5 cm thick; ovaries subglobose, ea. 2.5 mm diam.; style very short; stigma weakly lobed; sterile interstice ea. 2 cm long, narrowed, corresponding with spathe constriction, white; male zone whitish, ea. 8 cm long, cylindric, ea. 1.5 cm diam.; synandria rhombohexagonal, ea. 1.2 mm diam. (dry); thecae capped by synconnective; appendix basally slightly thicker than male zone, then subcylindric and distally tapering; fruiting spathe ovoid, ea. 10 cm long x 5 cm thick.