Nepenthes maxima
Nepenthes maxima
Nepenthes maxima is a carnivorous plant in the genus of pitcher plants ( Nepenthes ). It is native to parts of Indonesia and New Guinea.
Description
Nepenthes maxima are epiphytic or terrestrial, shrubby or climbing growing perennial plants that reach a height of up to 4 meters. The cylindrical in cross-section to triangular, 3-10 mm thick, dense fluffy brown hairy stems often has two, sometimes four winged angles, which are up to 2.5 mm wide. The internodes are 5-12 inches long, the clearly visible axillary buds thorn -like.
The densely fluffy brown hairy petioles of Nepenthes maxima are winged channel-shaped and narrow, up to 7 inches long, the wings are broad at the base into a vagina. The leaf blade (actually a vice imaginary leaf base, strictly speaking, is only the pot the leaf blade ) is leathery, 15 to 30 centimeters long and 2.5 to 7 inches wide, and vice versa - ovate to lanceolate, rounded at the outer end to pointed. Parallel to the dense fluffy brown hairy midrib run on each half of the leaf blade in its outer third to one quarter of one to three weak longitudinal ribs, not to be confused with the strongly pronounced, occurring at regular intervals grooves on the upper leaf surface. The numerous non-parallel side ribs are often branched and weak. The leaf margin is densely hairy fluffy brown.
As with pitcher plants often have the pitchers of Nepenthes maxima on a distinct dimorphism, the bottom, near the ground growing pitchers and higher, so-called air cans thus differ in shape and size. Nepenthes maxima is seen as a very variable species, in particular the shape of the upper pitchers ranging from narrow cylindrical to strong trumpet-shaped, in some populations, they are similar to the lower pitchers over their entire length down winged.
The lower pitchers are either narrow ovate, cylindrical, becoming upwards and occasionally Fitted or totally approximately cylindrical cylindrical- ellipsoidal until they reach a length of 8 to 20 centimeters and a diameter of 2.2 to 5 centimeters. Its two wings are up to 8 mm wide and up to 6 mm long fringes, are at intervals of 1 to 4 millimeters each other. The pot opening is ovoid and concave, the peristome forward nearly cylindrical and 2-5 mm wide, flattening out to cover approach and up to 15 millimeters is widening. The outer edge is simply curled up slightly, the inner toothed; The very pronounced fins to each other at intervals from 0.25 to 1 millimeter. The can lid is ovate, about 2.5 inches long and as wide, at the outer end it is rounded, cordate at the base, at the bottom it bears two appendages, which is facing the approach laterally flattened and hook-shaped curved towards the approach towards which the outer end more appendage is usually filiform and up to 12 millimeters long, but can rarely be reduced to an inconspicuous thickening. Nectar glands can be found here scattered to dense, mostly to the midrib, occasionally go up to the adjuncts. The ganzrandige spur is thready and up to 6 millimeters long.
Like all members of the genus Nepenthes maxima is also dioecious getrenntgeschlechtig ( dioecious ), ie a plant has either male or only female flowers. The approach from the dense fluffy brown hairy to the bottom of the bloom male inflorescences are 16 to 19, rarely up to 40 centimeters long, the pedicels 5.5 to 8, rarely up to 14 inches long and have a diameter at the base of 1.25 to 1.5 centimeters. From this then go from about 85 2 to 4, rarely to 5 mm long part inflorescences that bear two flowers in general. The linealischen bracts are reflexed, about 2.5 millimeters long and put 0-2 millimeters below the partial inflorescences on. The actual flower stems are 6-9, rarely up to 16 mm long. The bloom are elliptical, dark red, 3 to 4.5 mm long and 1.5 to 2.5, rarely up to 3.5 mm wide. The fluffy haired Androphor is 2.5 to 4 millimeters long.
Dissemination
Nepenthes maxima comes in Sulawesi, the Moluccas to New Guinea until at altitude 600-2500 meters (or occasionally at lower elevations up to 40 meters ) in front. The plants move as an epiphyte in mossy forests, terrestrial in marshy grassland, on rocky ridges, in open forests on white sand and metal-containing ultramafic soils.
System
Nepenthes maxima was first described in 1824 by the German botanist Caspar Georg Carl Reinwardt. The Style epithet means as much as " the greatest" and refers to the stately appearance of the plants.
As the closest related within the genus Nepenthes are klossii, Nepenthes fusca Nepenthes eymae.