Gelidocalamus fengkaiensis (Poaceae: Bambusoideae), a new bamboo species from Guangdong, China, with an analysis of branch development in relation to flowering

Abstract

Background Bamboos, widely distributed in temperate and tropical Asia, Africa and America, refer to a group of special plants in Poaceae, Bambusoideae. China is rich in bamboo species. However, due to a long flowering cycle, the flowering habit and the flowering structure of many bamboo species are still not well understood. Here, we report a new bamboo species from Guangdong, China and an analysis of its interesting branch development in relation to flowering. Results This species is similar to G. stellatus, the type species, but differs in the characteristics of its lemma and palea, mid-culm branch complement, and culm-sheath ligules. The initial branches at a culm node do not apically develop flowering structures during a flowering episode; instead, these form on what appears to be specialized flowering branches. Conclusions The results of morphological comparison support the recognition of Gelidocalamus fengkaiensis as a new species. And during a flowering episode, two branch types (‘foliage branch’ and ‘flowering branch’) can be distinguished in this species.

A Novel Elucidation for Synflorescences of Chinese Bamboos

“…Cai, Indosasa shibataeoides McClure and Shibataea sp. During a flowering episode of G. fengkaiensis, the apical meristem of a foliage leaf branch, tightly rolled by a very thickened leaf sheath, is dormant or even eventually senescent [53]. T present absent "T" refers to the true spikelet flowering branch and "P" refers to the pseudospikelet.…”

Gelidocalamus zixingensis (Poaceae, Bambusoideae, Arundinarieae), a new species from southern China revealed by morphological and molecular evidence

“…As a small but taxonomically problematic genus of Arundinarieae , Gelidocalamus T. H. Wen, 1982, containing ca. 11 species ( Li et al 2006 ; Zhang et al 2017 ; Cai et al 2021 ), is endemic to southwestern China, and characterized by a set of morphological features including several branches per node, a single foliage leaf on each ultimate branch typically (except G. multifolius B. M. Yang, 1986) ( Yang 1986 ), and semelauctant inflorescence. In addition, the new shoots occurring in autumn to winter are also a key feature of Gelidocalamus ( Keng and Wang 1996 ; Liu et al 2017 ; Nie et al 2018 ).…”