Psidium cauliflorum Landrum & Sobral, Type: Brazil. Bahia: mun. Cachoeira, Morro Belo,Vale dos Rios Paraguaçu e Jacuipe, 39º05’W, 12 º32’S, 40-100 m, Dec 1980 (fl), Grupo Pedra do Cavalo 955 (holotype, HRB, =ASU, BHCB photos; isotypes, ALCB (2 sheets),= ASU, BHCB photos, RB).
Tree 3-5.5 m high, sparsely to densely pubescent on young growth; hairs rusty brown to whitish, mostly erect or spreading, up to ca. 1 mm long; young twigs terete to slightly compressed, densely to moderately pubescent, the bark reddish brown to gray, the older twigs gray, glabrous, the bark somewhat flaky. LEAVES elliptic to oval, 2.7-6.8 cm long, 1-3 cm wide, 1.8-2.6 times as long as wide, moderately to sparsely puberulent (or more densely so along midvein), glabrescent with age; apex acute; base rounded to cuneate; petiole channeled, densely to sparsely pubescent to glabrescent, 2-3 mm long, 0.5-1 mm wide; venation brochidodromous, the midvein impressed proximally to nearly flat distally above, prominent below, the lateral veins slightly raised and visible above or obscure, 6-9 pairs leaving midvein at an angle of ca. 45 degrees, the marginal vein arching between laterals, equalling them in prominence, running ca. 1-1.5 (-3) mm from margin, the tertiary veins forming a dendritic pattern that arises from the marginal vein, scarcely to clearly visible; blades subcoriaceous, drying reddish brown to grayish, densely glandular beneath. FLOWER BUDS pyriform, often appearing apiculate, 4-6 mm long, densely pubescent on hypanthium, sometimes more sparsely so on calyx, borne on older stems in clusters of as many as 20, apparently appearing at the same point season after season, the hypanthium 1.5-3 mm long, obconic, the distal portion of bud subglobose, 2-3 mm long; indumentum pattern of buds with hypanthium densely pubescent, calyx without densely to moderately pubescent, calyx within subglabrous to puberulent, petals glabrous or with cilate margins, disk pubescent, style glabrous; peduncles uniflorous to triflorous, 1-9 mm long, ca. 0.6 mm wide, sometimes borne on short bracteate shoots, the branches of dichasia ca. 3 mm long; bracteoles linear to narrowly lanceolate, ca. 1-1.5 mm long, caducous before anthesis. CALYX closed except for an apical pore, with hairs sometimes protruding from pore, tearing irregularly at anthesis; petals obovate to suborbicular, ca. 7 mm long; disk ca. 3.5 mm across at anthesis (5 mm in fruit); stamens ca. 6 mm long, 150 – 190, the anthers ca. 0.3 mm long, with a terminal gland and usually 2 other glands in the connective; style ca. 8 mm long, glabrous; ovary 3-locular; ovules 7-20 per locule, uniseriate on each lamella of a slightly peltate placenta. FRUIT 1-2 cm in diam.; seeds few, ca. 6 mm long.
Only a few collections have been made of Psidium cauliflorum so little is known of this very distinctive, but rare species. It has been collected flowering in June, July, October, and December and probably fruits shortly afterward as is normally the case in Psidium. De Queiroz et al. report that it grows in “floresta estacional,” that is, temporarily deciduous dry forests.