Boucerosia decaisniana (Boucerosia decaisniana)
Description
Boucerosia decaisneana (best known as Caralluma decaisneana) is a slender much-branched perennial succulent not passing 20 cm high, forming diffuse mats to c. 50 cm in diameter, the stems decurved and rooting freely in contact with the soil. The star shaped flowers are blackish-purple, frosted with minute white papillae. It is a widespread and variable species,Slender, cylindrical, slightly angled with conical protuberance, erect to decumbent and rooting, apically tapering, whitish green, grey-green, marbled or spotted with brown to purple, 10-40 cm long, 12-15 mm in diameter, excluding teeth, 3- to 6-ribbed, sides conspicuously furrowed. Tubercles (the 'teeth') 7-15 mm long, strong, conical-subulate, with a slight groove among them, horizontal to ascending,Rudimentary at tubercle apex; stipular denticles absent,1-3 per stem more or less erect. Peduncle, almost absent, cushion-like, 1- to 5(-20)-flowered, sometimes with 1 mm long filiform bracts, flowers developing in gradual succession. Pedicels 1 - 5 mm, more or less conical up to 2(-3) mm in diameter, spreading, Bisexual, regular, 5-merous, with fetid smell 8-15 mm long, 15-25 mm in diameter. Sepals 3-5 mm long, acute. Corolla, campanulate, outside cream mottled with brown, inside dark purple or reddish-brown sometimes yellow towards base of tube, flat, tube 4 (-6) x 6-8 mm in diameter, cup-shaped, embracing the corona. Corolla-lobes 7-12 mm long, 5-8 mm wide, elongate-ovate, acute, ascending then horizontally spreading, inside glabrous to finely papillate, papillae whitish, surface appearing frosted, apically sometimes with a fine white bristle. Margins reflexed at times with purple clavate hairs. Corona flesh-coloured to purple 5-angled c. 4 mm x c. 5 mm. Outer lobes c. 2 mm long, pouch-like, apically often emarginate, inner lobes triangular to broadly lanceolate, c. 1 mm long, slightly longer than style head; style head pentagonal. Pollinia ovoid, 0.5 mm long, 0.3 mm wide, large in relation to flowers size
Taxonomic tree
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Domain: Eukarya
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Kingdom: Plantae
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Phylum:
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Class: Magnoliopsida
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Order: Gentianales
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Family: Apocynaceae
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Genus: Gentianales
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