17. Ruellia lorentziana Griseb. Ruellia lorentziana Griseb. Abh. Boehm. Ges. Wiss. 24: 259. 1879. Grisebach based his description on Lorentz's No. 1598, collected at Tucumán, Argentina. Suffrutescent; stems erect, obscurely quadrangular, glandular- puberulous; petioles 1 to 3 cm. long, glabrous or sparingly pilose; leaf blades ovate, up to 16 cm. long and 9 cm. wide, obtuse at apex, nar- rowed at base and decurrent on the petiole, rather firm, crenulate- crisped, both surfaces glabrous or sparingly pilose, the cystoliths nu- merous and prominent; inflorescence a terminal interrupted narrow panicle, the branches 2- or 3-flowered; peduncles 1 to 3 cm. long, glandular-puberulous; bracts linear, 3 to 8 mm. long, glandular- puberulous; pedicels 1 to 2 mm. long; calyx 10 to 12 mm. long, glandular-puberulous, the tube 2 mm. long, the segments linear- subulate, unequal, 0.5 mm. wide near base; corolla, when fully ex- panded, 3 to 3.5 cm. long, sparingly puberulous, mauve, the narrow basal portion of the tube about 8 mm. long and 3 mm. in diameter, the upper portion campanulate, 10 to 13 mm. in diameter at mouth, the limb 3 mm. broad, the lobes rounded; stamens included; capsule fusi- form, 2 cm. long, 4 mm. broad, abruptly narrowed and pointed at apex, narrowed at base (the solid basal portion about 4 mm. long), glandular-puberulous, 12- to 16-seeded; seed flat, ovate, subcordate at base, about 3 mm. long and 2 mm. broad, mucilaginous-pilose when moistened. VERNACULAR NAME: Campanula morada (Duque 1446). Ruellia lorentziana closely resembles R. obtusa Nees and R. tuberosa L. It can, however, be easily separated from these two species by its puberulous capsules and the glandular hairs of the inflorescence. The species was named in honor of Paul Guenther Lorentz, a collector of Argentine plants. Along roads or railways and open waste places in general. Colom- bia, Peru, and Argentina.
CUNDINAMARCA: Vicinity of Apulo, Killip, Dugand, & Jaramillo 38257 (US). Nariño, Pérez-Arbeláez 399 (US). Tocaima, Pérez-Arbeláez 2518 (US). EL VALLE: Vicinity of Aqueduct, Río Cali, Duque 1446 (Valle). MAGDALENA: Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta, Barkley & Araque 22 (US). TOLIMA: Mariquita, Triana s. n. (Col). WITHOUT DEFINITE LOCALITY: Holton 598 (GH, NY).