Epilobium hirtigerum

Detailed description

Robust perennial, stoloniferous, dull grey to grey-green, reddish tinged herb, 0.2–1.8 m tall. Plants distinctly hairy, all parts except petals densely covered in long spreading, and short erect, eglandular, greyish hairs; hairs of inflorescence glandular. Stems usually unbranched; woody near base. Stolons numerous (especially in winter), arising from base of stems, and sometimes from rootstock, dark red, glabrescent. Stolon leaves bright green, streaked, tinged or blotched dark red, glabrous, 50–80 × 10–40 mm, broadly ovate,to elliptic, base oblique to broadly cuneate, sometimes attenuate, apex acute to obtuse, sometimes rounded, margins coarsely and ± evenly serrated, teeth up to 18 on each side; lateral veins 2–4 each side of midrib, conspicuous. Leaves of stems and inflorescences alternate except near base where opposite, glaucous, hairy; 15–60 × 2–8 mm, linear to narrowly lanceolate, base acute or acuminate, apex acuminate, margins coarsely serrate, sometimes undulate, teeth 0–12 on each side, evenly distributed or concentrated toward leaf apex; lateral veins 2–4 each side of midrib, usually inconspicuous. Inflorescence erect. Flowers erect, up 16 mm diameter. Pedicel 0–70 mm long. Ovaries 14–30 mm long, invested with spreading, appressed, glandular hairs. Sepals keeled, 2.5–5.3 × 0.8–1.0 mm, invested with spreading, appressed, glandular hairs. Floral tube 0.5–0.9 mm deep. 1.0–1.5 mm diameter at apex, internally bearing a conspicuous ring of long white hairs. Petals white (North Island and South Island) or rose-pink (South Island), 2.8–8.0 × 1.8–5.2 mm wide, notched, notch 0.6–1.8 mm deep, petals of white-flowered plants often shorter than sepals, scarcely spreading apart at anthesis, petals of rose-pink –flowered plants longer than sepals, spreading widely at anthesis. Stamens 8, of two lengths, 4 longer (0.8–4.0 mm) and 4 shorter (0.3–0.5 mm); anthers 0.5–1.2 × 0.3–0.5 mm, cream. Stigma rarely positioned above lower set of stamens; style 1.2–4.2 mm long, white, basally invested in long hairs; stigma clavate, 0.6–2.4 × 0.6–0.9 mm. Capsules on pedicels 6–15 mm long; narrowly cylindric, 35–60 mm long, densely pubescent with both long, spreading, appressed, eglandular, and shorter, erect, glandular hairs. Seeds 0.9–1.1 × 0.5 mm, orange-brown, obovoid, papillose; coma easily detached, 5–8 mm long, white.