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 52 Strobilanthes DHJanzen100443.jpg high resolution
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| While iteroparous mast-seeding trees are moderately frequent in occurrence around the world, bamboo is the only semelparous woody plant that is widespread (many species in many places) and well known. There are a few others, but all are rare or local. One of these is Strobilanthes (Acanthaceae), a small shrubby tree that used to cover the hills of central-south India and Sri Lanka (or Ceylon, as it was called when the interaction was still relatively intact). It also occurs in some mountains in eastern Africa, but is even more poorly known there. Above is a hill in Sri Lanka that still has a dense cover of a monospecific stand of Strobilanthes (see DHJanzen100444.jpg below). | ||
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