Monophyllaea horsfieldii is an herbaceous lithophyte belonging to the family Gesneriaceae and found mostly on limestone outcropings in Borneo and peninsular Malaysia.
| Monophyllaea horsfieldii | |
|---|---|
Scientific classification 
| |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| Clade: | Tracheophytes |
| Clade: | Angiosperms |
| Clade: | Eudicots |
| Clade: | Asterids |
| Order: | Lamiales |
| Family: | Gesneriaceae |
| Genus: | Monophyllaea |
| Species: | M. horsfieldii
|
| Binomial name | |
| Monophyllaea horsfieldii R.Br.
| |
Description
editThe entire plant consists of a single cotyledon of Brobdingnagian proportions; the blade or lamina can be "over a metre" (over 40 inches) in length and about 30 inches (75 centimeters) wide, topping a massive hypocotyl of similar length. It grows new tissue at the joint of the blade and hypocotyl, while the oldest tissue at the edge gradually dies back.[1][2]
References
edit- ^ Cranbrook, Earl of (1988). Key Environments - Malaysia. Elmsford, N.Y.: Pergamon Press. p. 62. ISBN 0-08-028866-9.
- ^ Graf, Alfred Byrd (1970). Exotica. East Rutherford, N.J.: The Roehrs Company. p. 1655.