Rochefortia acanthophora (DC.) Griseb.

  • Authority

    Acevedo-Rodríguez, Pedro & collaborators. 1996. Flora of St. John, U.S. Virgin Islands. Mem. New York Bot. Gard. 78: 1-581.

  • Family

    Boraginaceae

  • Scientific Name

    Rochefortia acanthophora (DC.) Griseb.

  • Description

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    Species Description - Shrub or small tree to 7 m tall; branches usually flexuous, with axillary spines. Leaves congested on short axillary branches; blades 0.8-2.5 x 0.4-1 cm, obovate to oblanceolate, coriaceous, sparsely covered with minute hairs, especially on lower surface, slightly scabrous on upper surface, main vein prominent on lower surface, the apex rounded and notched, the base cuneate, the margins entire and revolute; petioles 1-3 mm long. Flowers sessile, paired or solitary in leaf axils. Sepals oblong-ovate, 4-5 mm long, pubescent; corolla white to yellowish, funnel-shaped, the tube 1.5-2 mm long, striate, the lobes spreading or ascending, oblong, 2.5-3.5 mm long; stamens unequal, exserted, the anthers ellipsoid, with short filaments; ovary conical, glabrous, the styles 2 mm long, the stigma dilated. Fruit nearly globose, 4-5 mm diam.

    Distribution and Ecology - A common tree of dry coastal scrub. West slopes of Fish Bay (A3909). Also on St. Croix, St. Thomas, and Virgin Gorda; the Greater and Lesser Antilles.