Kalanchoe × estrelae Gideon F.Sm., 2020

Smith, Gideon F., 2020, Kalanchoe × estrelae (Crassulaceae subfam. Kalanchooideae): a new nothospecies for the hybrid between K. luciae and K. sexangularis, Phytotaxa 441 (2), pp. 225-228 : 225-227

Kalanchoe × estrelae Gideon F.Sm. nothospec. nov.

nothovar. estrelae

Type:— SOUTH AFRICA. Gauteng province.—2528 (Pretoria): Pretoria , (–CA), ex hort., 28 March 2020, G.F. Smith 1101 (holotype PRU) .

Parentage:— Kalanchoe luciae Raymond-Hamet ( Hamet 1908: 256) × Kalanchoe sexangularis Brown (1913: 120)

Diagnosis:—Plants of Kalanchoe ×estrelae are medium-sized, glabrous, non-waxy, biennial to short-lived perennial succulents that are intermediate between its parents, K. luciae and K. sexangularis . The maroon to crimson red leaf colour of K. × estrelae was inherited from both parents, as was its decussate leaf arrangement. Kalanchoe ×estrelae differs from K. luciae by its leaves usually being smaller, somewhat wavy, and tending to have an obovate to less round shape, with the leaf marginal architecture varying from perfectly smooth (as in K. luciae ) to shallowly scalloped (as in K. sexangularis ). The corolla tubes of K. × estrelae are narrowly urnshaped to angular-cylindrical as in K. sexangularis , but the tube colour is uniformly light yellowish green as in K. luciae , and the tubes lack a waxy covering, unlike those of K. luciae that have a dense waxy covering, so obscuring the light yellowish green tube colour ( Fig. 1E ). The inflorescences of K. × estrelae are more densely flowered than in K. sexangularis , but less densely flowered than in K. luciae .

Description:— Biennial to short-lived perennial to more rarely perennial, few-leaved, unbranched at first, later sprouting from the base or higher up, glabrous, medium-sized to robust succulent, 0.6–1.2 m tall when in flower. Stems reddish green to deep wine-red, unbranched or with few branches, arising from a sturdy base, erect to leaning, often with a few lengthwise running ridges, somewhat 4-angled on sterile and fertile shoots. Leaves opposite-decussate, not petiolate, green infused with red to a near-uniform deep crimson red to maroon, succulent, spreading to erectly spreading, not longitudinally recurved, coriaceous and papery-flimsy on drying; petiole absent, leaves not clasping the stem; blade 110–150 × 70–80 mm, broadly elliptic or obovate to oblong, often somewhat folded upwards lengthwise to wavy, flat to curved up along the margins; base cuneate to narrowly triangular; apex rounded-obtuse; margins smooth or coarsely crenate or undulate-crenate into rounded, harmless, crenations, saucer-like curved upwards. Inflorescence 500–800 mm tall, erect, apically dense, many-flowered, diffusely club-shaped thyrse consisting of several dichasia terminating in monochasia, with several dichasia, rather ellipsoid in outline when viewed from above, branches opposite, sometimes only one at a node, erect to slanted away from the main flowering stem at an angle of 45°, subtended by leaf-like bracts, sometimes with leafy branchlets in axils, axis reddish green to bright crimson red; pedicels 4–11 mm long, slender. Flowers spreading-erect at anthesis, light yellowish green (tube) to white infused with light yellowish green (lobes); calyx shiny bright green, sepals ± 6 × 2.0– 2.5 mm, triangular-lanceolate, succulent, ± separate above, basally fused for ± 1mm, acute, hardly contrasting against light yellowish green corolla tube; corolla ± 16 mm long, enlarged lower down, tapering to the mouth, not twisted apically after anthesis, light yellowish green and white infused with light yellowish green, tube ± 15 mm long, tubular-urn-shaped, indistinctly 4-angled, round when viewed from below, longitudinally indistinctly fluted above, light yellowish green, lobes 5 × 4 mm, ovate-rectangular, straight lower down, rounded at apex, apiculate, white infused with light yellowish green. Stamens 8, inserted in two ranks, one rank just above the middle of the tube, the other well above the middle of the corolla tube, 4 slightly exserted, 4 included but visible at the mouth; filaments 4–5 mm long, thin, yellow; anthers 0.75–1.00 mm long, yellowish. Pistil consisting of 4 carpels; carpels 10 mm long, light green; styles 4 mm long; stigmas very slightly capitate, whitish yellow; scales ± 2 mm long, ± 1 mm broad at widest point, tapering towards the apex, tooth-like rounded apically, uniformly light greenish yellow. Follicles 6–7 mm long, enveloped in dry, papery, creamy white remains of corolla tube and dry, light brown corolla lobes, drying dull light green, grass spikelet-like, remaining connivent, styles persistent for a long time, calyx drying dull green and diverging from follicles. Seeds 0.60–0.75 mm long, light brown, longitudinally obscurely striated with lighter brown, cylindrical to slightly banana-shaped-curved. Chromosome number: unknown.

Flowering time:— The main flowering period of K. × estrelae is from winter to spring, from July–September, in the southern hemisphere. However, some forms of the nothospecies have been known to sporadically flower during other seasons. The two parents, K. luciae and K. sexangularis , from which K. × estrelae was derived, similarly flower predominantly during winter.

Eponymy:— Kalanchoe × estrelae is named for Prof. Dr Estrela Paula das Neves Figueiredo (10 May 1963, Coimbra, Portugal –) of the Department of Botany of the Nelson Mandela University in Port Elizabeth, South Africa ( Fig. 1F ). Estrela has a longstanding interest in succulent plants and has authored or co-authored over 300 scientific papers and several books on these and other plants. She has published more than 50 works on Kalanchoe alone, including co-authoring a book on the genus in southern Africa ( Smith et al. 2019b).

Figures

FIGURE 1. A. Kalanchoe luciae, near Pretoria, Gauteng province, South Africa. B. Kalanchoe sexangularis var. sexangularis, near Mbombela, Mpumalanga, South Africa. C. Kalanchoe ×estrelae in cultivation in Pretoria. D. Inflorescence of K. ×estrelae. E. Comparison of the flowers of K. luciae (left), K. ×estrelae (center), and K. sexangularis var. sexangularis (right). Scale bar = 10 mm. F. Prof. Estrela Figueiredo for whom K. ×estrelae is named framed by spent inflorescences of K. sexangularis var. sexangularis. Photograph taken on 19 November 2017. All photographs taken by Gideon F. Smith.