Chrysosplenium davidianum

Description

Chrysosplenium davidianum, David's Dorine is a herbaceous plant of the Saxifragaceae family, growing in shady wetlandsin central and southern China (Sichuan, Yunnan). Chrysosplenium davidianum is a clustering, perennial herbaceous plant, 3 to 19 cmtall, with villous, brownrhizomes. The brown stems are brittle. The basal leaves have a 1-3 cmpetiole villous and abroadly ovate to broadly subellipticalblade, 2-4 x 2-3.7 cm; both sides are villous, brown along the veins and margin. Teacaulineleaves have a shorter petiole (5-6 mm). The inflorescence is acymebearing numerous flowers and bracts. The yellow flower bears 4 orbicularsepals. The 8 stamens are 1-2 mm. The fruit is acapsule. Flowering and fruiting occur in April-August The species grows in China in the provinces of Guizhou, OSichuan, N and OYunnan. It grows in shady, moist grassy places in the forest understory and between rocks in ravines, between 1500-4100 m. The genus name Chrysosplenium is composed of the Greek words χρυςος khrusos "gold" and σπλην, σπληνος, splên, splênos "spleen". The specific epithet davidianium was given to honor the collector Armand David. The Russian botanist Carl Maximowicz from Saint Petersburg who made naturalistic expeditions to Siberia, China and Japan gave the first description of the species under the name of Chrysosplenii Davidianum. He relied on a specimen collected in Tibet eastern in the principality of Moupin by Father Armand David. Later, Joseph Decaisne reclassified it as Chrysosplenium davidianum. This dorine was one of the first forest plants collected by Father David, an evergreen saxifragaceae that provides effective ground cover in moist, shady places. In 1869, established for a few months in the college of the Foreign Missions of Moupin (currently in Dengchigou in the district of Baoxing), west of Chengdu in China, Father David collected specimens of mammals, birds, insects and plants both remarkable for the number and the quality.