Nanocnide zhejiangensis sp. nov. (Urticaceae: Urticeae) from Zhejiang Province,East China

Nanocnide zhejiangensis X.F. Jin & Y.F. Lu, a new species of Urticaceae from Zhejiang, east China, is described with illustrations. The new species is morphologically similar to Nanocnide japonica in having staminate inflorescence longer than leaves, but differs by having glabrous stems, petioles, peduncles and abaxial leaf surfaces, glabrous perianth lobes of staminate flowers, dorsally glabrous perianth lobes of pistillate flowers, and acuminate or solitary spinose–setaceous at the apex. Analysis based on ITS, atpF–H, atpB–rbcL and trnL–F sequences also demonstrate that Nanocnide japonica is the closest extant relative to the new species.     

Hemiboea sinovietnamica sp. nov. (Gesneriaceae) from a limestone area along the boundary of Sino‐Vietnam

Hemiboea sinovietnamica W. B. Xu & X. Y. Zhuang, a new species of Gesneriaceae from a limestone area along the boundary of Sino‐Vietnam, is described and illustrated. The new species is similar to H. longgangensis Z. Y. Li with its yellowish corolla, but differs in having leaf blades glabrous on both sides, involucre trigonous, 2–3 cm in diameter, glabrous outside, glabrous cymes, a white calyx that is glabrous outside, and glabrous pistil and capsule.     

Carex sinosupina sp. nov. (sect. Lamprochlaenae,Cyperaceae) from Gansu,north central China

Carex sinosupina, a new species from Gansu, China is described and illustrated. This species is similar to C. aridula and C. ivanoviae, but differs by having broader leaves, 2.0–3.5 mm wide, perigynia 3–5‐veined abaxially and achenes concave at the middle of one lateral surface. Based on a field survey and SEM (scanning electron microscope) observation of the micromorphology of perigynia and achenes, the morphology and micromorphology of the new species, C. aridula and C. ivanoviae is compared.     

Impatiens pingxiangensis sp. nov. (Balsaminaceae) from the limestone areas in Guangxi,China

Impatiens pingxiangensis H. Y. Bi & S. X. Yu (Balsaminaceae), a new species from the limestone areas in Guangxi, China, is described and illustrated. The new species is similar to I. obesa in having succulent stems, subsessile peduncle, tufted pedicel and the lower petal in each pair of lateral united petals being connate, but differs from the latter by having perennial stems, leaf blades with 7–9 pairs of lateral veins, 1–2‐flowered racemes, ovate inner lateral sepals, and elliptic capsule. Moreover, the pollen and seed coat characters also support the recognition of the new species.     

Carex yandangshanica sp. nov. (Cyperaceae; C. sect. Rhomboidales) from Zhejiang,China

Carex yandangshanica C. Z. Zheng & X. F. Jin, a new species of Carex sect. Rhomboidales Kükenth. from Zhejiang, China, is described and illustrated. The new species is similar to C. thibetica Franch. and C. brevicuspis C. B. Clarke, but differs from the former by having trabeculate leaves, pistillate spikes with 6–10 staminate flowers or without staminate flower at the apex, and achenes at apex contracted into a slightly curved beak, and from the latter by having lateral culms, trabeculate leaves, and elliptic, rubiginous and awned pistillate scales. SEM microphotographs of perigynia and achenes are provided for the new species and related taxa.     

Plagiomnium guizhouense Y.-J.Yi & S.He sp. nov. (Mniaceae) found in southwestern China

A new species of Plagiomnium (Mniaceae), P. guizhouense Y.-J.Yi & S.He from Guizhou, China is described and illustrated. The new species is similar to P. affine in having spinosely serrate leaf margins with teeth consisting of up to 4 or more cells, a broadly elliptic leaf shape, and a decurrent leaf base, but is distinguished from the latter species by having a cuspidate leaf apex, broader marginal differentiation with borders consisting of 4–5 rows of linear, thick-walled cells, strongly ciliate marginal teeth that are sometimes branched and up to 7 cells long in upper fertile stem leaves and perichaetial leaves, and a much shorter leaf costa that ends just above mid-leaf in the lower leaves.     

Impatiens maculifera sp. nov. (Balsaminaceae) Yunnan,China

Impatiens (Balsaminaceae) is a notoriously difficult genus to study for reasons that include small, remote and endemic areas of occurrence, and difficulty in obtaining well‐dried herbarium specimens and separating and reconstructing floral parts from available dried specimens. Impatiens has also been notoriously difficult when it comes to phylogenetic resolution at the infrageneric level, but a new system with two subgenera (Impatiens and Clavicarpa) was recently proposed by Yu et al. and it has made it easier to classify newly discovered species. Impatiens maculifera, a new species of Balsaminaceae from Malipo County, Yunnan, China described here, is similar to I. parvisepala S.X. Yu & Y.T. Hou in having racemose inflorescences, four lateral sepals, clavate capsules and ellipsoid seeds, but differs in having leaves narrowly oval or with elliptic–lanceolate blades (versus obovate or obovate–lanceolate), obvious petioles (versus leaves subsessile), racemose inflorescence with 8–12 flowers (versus 6–8 flowers), flowers greenish yellow (versus yellow), lateral united petals and lower sepal with dense red spots (versus red spots absent), and dorsal petal with apparent stalk at base (versus unapparent stalk). Morphological characters and molecular phylogenetic analyses of DNA sequences from both nuclear ribosomal and plastid genes show that the new species differs distinctively from I. parvisepala. Furthermore, I. maculifera is distinguished from other Impatiens species based on morphological, micromorphological and palynological evidence, and molecular data.     

Eriocaulon vandaanamense sp. nov. (Eriocaulaceae) from Kerala,India

Eriocaulon vandaanamense (Eriocaulaceae), a new species from a marshy coastal area in the Alappuzha District, Kerala, India, is described and illustrated. The new species is similar to E. truncatum and resembles it in having vertically elongated seed coat cells, but differs mainly in having pale black hoary floral bracts, 3‐lobed hoary male sepals, linear‐falcate, non‐conduplicate hoary female sepals, and small, smooth, pale brown seeds without seed coat appendages.     

Carex nodosa (Cyperaceae), a new species of C. sect. Occlusae from southwest China

Carex nodosa (Cyperaceae), a new species from Chongqing and Sichuan, southwest China, is described and illustrated. The new species resembles C. hebecarpa C. A. Mey., but differs in having sheath‐like bracts, 4.0–7.5 cm long male spikes, oblanceolate 7.1–8.6 mm long male scales, and perigynia that are glabrous except for ciliate beaks.     

Spiradiclis glabra sp. nov. (Rubiaceae) from limestone areas in Guangdong,China

A new species of Rubiaceae, Spiradiclis glabra, is described and illustrated from China. The species is most similar to S. fusca, but differs by having 5–7 pairs of adaxially unconspicuous secondary veins in the leaves, stipules 2–5 mm long, calyx lobes ovate‐triangular, corollas slightly purple–reddish, tubes 13–15 mm long, inside with a pubescent ring of long hairs at the throat, and stamens near the base in long‐styled form. The conservation status of this new species was assessed as ‘Vulnerable’ (VU) according to IUCN.     

Begonia baik and B. padawanensis spp. nov. (Begoniaceae) from sandstone areas in Sarawak,Malaysia

Two new species of Begonia (Begoniaceae), B. baik and B. padawanensis, from Sarawak are described and illustrated. Begonia baik, a member of sect. Petermannia, resembles B. conipila, but is distinguishable by having glabrous ovary (vs sparsely hispid) and margins of bracts dentate and glandular hairy (vs entire). Begonia padawanensis (sect. Reichenheimia) is similar to B. andersonii, differing in the leaves being obtriangular‐spatulate (vs orbicular) and having 5 pistillate flower tepals (vs 4). Both new species were discovered in a sandstone area in Padawan, Sarawak.     

Aristolochia bhamoensis sp. nov. (Aristolochiaceae) and a diagnostic key to all known A. subgen. Siphisia species from Myanmar

Aristolochia bhamoensis from Myanmar is here described and illustrated. This new species is morphologically similar to A. faviogonzalezii (confined to northern Vietnam) and A. cathcartii (growing in the Himalayan region) but is distinguished from the latter two species by having a cream‐white upper part of the perianth tube, with visible purple ridges, a trumpet‐shaped limb, 5.0–5.5 cm diameter, inner surface of limb lobes densely covered with dark‐purple bristles, a nearly circular mouth, 3.2–3.5 cm wide, upper half of throat being dark‐purple to blackish, without striations or dots, and lower half purple, with conspicuous white striation. Morphological characters such as a 3‐lobed gynostemium and a 3‐lobed limb support a placement of the new species in the subgenus Siphisia. A diagnostic key is provided to the seven Siphisia species known from Myanmar.     

Ilex sanqingshanensis sp. nov. (Aquifoliaceae) from Jiangxi Province,China

Ilex sanqingshanensis, a new species of Aquifoliaceae from Jiangxi, China, is described and illustrated with morphological characteristics and ultrastructure of pollen grains. The new species is easily distinguished from the most similar species I. wugongshanensis C. J. Tseng ex S. K. Chen et Y. X. Feng by having smaller leaves that are elliptic, ovate or elliptic‐ovate, with shorter (0.5–1.0 vs 2–3 mm) teeth on the leaf margin, longer pedicels of staminate flowers (2.0–3.5 vs 1.5 mm), smaller pyrenes (3.5–4.0 × 2.0–2.5 vs 4.5–5.0 × 3.0 mm), and woody pyrenes (vs stony pyrenes).     

Primulina debaoensis sp. nov. (Gesneriaceae) from a limestone cave in Guangxi,China

A new species of Gesneriaceae, Primulina debaoensis Neng Jiang & Hong Li, from Guangxi Zhuangzu Autonomous Region, China, is illustrated and described here. It resembles another endemic and stenochoric species in Guangxi, P. pungentisepala (W. T. Wang) Mich. Möller & A. Weber, but differs by having 12–18 or more leaves, leaf blade being broadly linear, oblanceolate‐elliptical or oblanceolate, bracts being ovate or elliptical with silvery or argenteous nerves and by having a yellow ovary that is 4–5 mm long and sparsely white pubescent.     

Saussurea pseudograminea sp. nov. (Asteraceae) from the Qinghai–Tibetan plateau,China

Morphological characteristics, as well as ultrastructure of pollen grains, chromosome numbers and karyotype analysis have been used to establish a new species of Saussurea from the Qinghai–Tibetan plateau. The new species, Saussurea pseudograminea Y. F. Wang, G. Z. Du et Y. S. Lian is easily distinguished from the similar S. graminea Dunn by having 2–3 capitula, involucre 0.7–1.2 cm in diameter, smaller pollen grains, pollen surface with larger and denser spines, achenes 4.0–5.5 mm long, 32 chromosomes, and a karyotype formula 2n = 2x = 32 = 18m + 10sm + 4st, whereas S. graminea has solitary capitula, involucre 1.2–2.0 cm in diameter, larger pollen grains, pollen surface with smaller and sparser spines, achenes 3–4 mm long, 28 chromosomes and a karyotype formula 2n = 2x = 28 = 6m + 20sm + 2st. The new species is distributed in Dianzhangou, Awanchang, and Gamaliang mountain regions of Maqu county in Gansu province.     

Dendrocalamus parvigemma sp. nov. (Gramineae: Bambusoideae) from Vietnam

A new species of Dendrocalamus Nees from Vietnam, D. parvigemma N. H. Xia, V. T. Nguyen et V. L. Le, is described and illustrated. The new species is morphologically similar to D. latiflorus Munro and D. yunnanicus Hsueh & Li, from which it differs by having a very small and nearly circular culm bud, dense, 1.4–1.6 cm long, palea with bristles and apex split in 2, narrowly lanceolate ovary, and sheath ligule 5 mm heigh and irregularly serrulate.