This is a public-interest archive. Personal data is pseudonymized and retained under GDPR Article 89.

SANSEVIERIA IN INDIA - NOTES

SANSEVIERIA IN INDIA - NOTES

Steve Jankalski

A most wonderful thing happened. I got a phone call from R.Haresh from
Philadelphia on Monday and he told me he was mailing me plants of all the
Sansevierias he has found in India. I received the plants on Wednesday and
they were of six different collections. The collections are different from
the three that were offered by Juan through the Sansevieria Journal in 1994
& 1995.

I was quickly able to arrange the plants into four very different looking
species. It may be a few years before I can give a full account on the
plants. Here are some preliminary notes.

There are four species that have been recorded from Asia. The collections I
received correspond well to the four named species. Many of the plants in
the trade are wrongly named and do not correspond to the original
illustrations and descriptions.

************************************
The four Indian species form a closely allied group and appear to have a
close affinity to the southern African Sansevieria hyacinthoides-aethiopica
complex.

All the Indian species have a bicolor leaf margin (a reddish border and a
hyaline white margin).

Sans.burmanica is native to India. The Burmese origin stated by J.D. Hooker
is doubtful.

Sans.zeylanica and Sans.ebracteata leaves are strongly channeled down the
back.

Sans.roxburghiana and Sans.burmanica leaves are lined or only faintly
channeled down the back.

Sans.ebracteata has the thickest leaves, from quarter moon to almost half
moon shape in cross-section.

Sans.burmanica has the narrowest and thinest leaves.

Sans.ebracteata leaves are rough to the touch, Sans.zeylanica may also have
roughened leaves and  the others have rather smooth leaves.

The leaves of Sans.ebracteata appear verrucose roughened when viewed under
a hand lens and not woolly as originally reported.

*************************************
Sans.zeylanica distributed by Grigsby (GC118-78) is actually
Sans.grandicuspis Haworth.

Sans.javanica hort. not Blume (1827) is a misidentification of
Sans.subspicata Baker from Mozambique and is not an Asiatic species.

Sans. sp. "India" is not a native Indian species and appears to be a
selection of Sans.hyacinthoides (L.) Druce (Sans.thyrsiflora Thunberg,
Sans.guineensis (L.) Willdenow). The leaves are much broader than any
Indian species.
Other Mailing lists | Author Index | Date Index | Subject Index | Thread Index