Schwenckia trujilloi

Schwenckia trujilloi is a species of flowering plant in the family Solanaceae. It grows primarily in wet tropical biomes, particularly in shrubby savannas on well-drained soils. The species is native to the Amazonas region of Venezuela.^[1] It was discovered during a botanical research expedition on 27 February 1986, when the Venezuelan botanist Carmen Emilia Benítez de Rojas collected specimens and identified two new species of the genus: S. huberi and S. trujilloi.

Elevation: Approximately 700 meters above sea level.^[2]

• Habit: A multi-stemmed shrub (frutex pluricaulis), perennial and generally erect at first.^[2]
• Stems: Olive-brown, 2–3 mm in diameter, reaching up to 4 meters in length. They are initially leafless but become wavy (flexuosis), slightly branched, and leafy as they grow. They are covered in upward-pointing (antrorsos) hairs, especially on younger stems. Leaves: Membranous in texture with petioles (leaf stalks) 9–25 mm long.^[2]
  • Blade shape: Broadly ovate, 3–7 cm long and 1.5–4 cm wide.^[2]
  • Surface: The upper side has scattered, ascending hairs; the underside has hairs concentrated along the veins.
  • Margins/base: The tip (apex) is tapered or sharp; the base is broadly heart-shaped (subcordata or cordata)

• Inflorescence: Loose (lax) panicles located at the ends of branches or in the leaf axils. Pedicels (flower stalks) are 3–6 mm long and hairy.^[2]
• Calyx: Tubular, 3–3.5 mm long, hairy on both the interior and exterior; it has 5 lobes, each 1–1.5 mm long.
• Corolla: Erect and hairless (glabrous), colored a violet-green. It is 1.5–2 cm long with a cylindrical tube that widens slightly at the top, ending in 5 tooth-like lobes.^[3]
• Stamens: Two fertile stamens that protrude (exserted) from the flower. The filaments are flattened/plate-like at the top and hairy; anthers are 1 mm long and oblong.^[3]
• Fruit: A spherical (globoso) capsule, 3–3.5 mm in diameter. The calyx remains attached and is constricted below the lobes.
• Seeds: Between 6 and 14 seeds, dark brown or reddish in color^[3]
• Habitat: Specifically located on slopes within shrublands, preferring crumbly (deleznables) soils. It appears to be endemic to the Henri Pittier National Park in Venezuela.^[3]
  • Related Species: It is closely related to Schwenkia grandiflora, but differs in the following ways:
    • S. trujilloi has longer, wavy stems (up to 4m) and smaller leaves (under 7 cm long).
    • S. grandiflora has leaves longer than 7 cm and flowers that exceed 2 cm in length.^[3]