Allium caroli-henrici Wendelbo, 1968

Khan, Nazar, Fritsch, R. M., Sultan, Amir & Khan, Tahir, 2021, ALLIUM (AMARYLLIDACEAE) SPECIES IN PAKISTAN: TWO NEW RECORDS AND A NEW SPECIES FROM ZHOB (BALOCHISTAN), Pakistan Journal of Botany 53 (5), pp. 1-7 : 2

Allium caroli-henrici Wendelbo (Bot. Not. 121: 274, 1968) Figs. 7-11 , 17

Bulbs 3 cm long, 1.5-2.2 cm in diameter, globose, with coriaceous, blackish to dark brown, longitudinally split outer tunics; inner tunics thin, pale to light brown. Scape purplish, 8-12 cm erect to slightly flexuose, (subterranean scape 4-4.5 cm). Leaves 1-3, opposite, as long as scape or longer, 3.5-9 mm wide, linear, margin minutely scabrid. Spathe 0.5-1.5 cm long, four-lobed, membranous with purple nerves. Umbel hemispherical, dense; with unequal, 1.5-3 cm long, cylindrical, thin pedicels. Perigonum campanulate; tepals mauve with dark to brownish flush paler at base (purple at tip and yellowish at base when dry), nerve purplish, unequal 7- 10 mm long, obtuse, margins entire, outer tepals elliptic, inner tepals ovate. Filaments nearly half the length of tepals (inner filament slightly longer), 3.5-5.5 mm long, inner filaments subulate broader at base, outer filaments suboblong, filaments connate at base and adnate to tepals. Anthers 2 mm, oblong, dorsifixed, yellow. Ovary ovoid to cylindrical, angular, green, style 2- 3 mm, stigma lobed, mature capsule brownish, triangular obcordate. Seeds black, irregularly shaped, rough, up to 2.5 mm.

Vernacular name: Sur Khatol

Distribution: Previously only reported as endemic from SW and C. Afghanistan in the provinces Farah, Daykundi and Urozgan ( Wendelbo, 1971; Breckle et al., 2013). Newly found in Pakistan in Qamardin Karez west of Zhob district along the border with Afghanistan. A very rare species in our area.

Ecology: Found in red clay loam soils.

Ethnobotany: The bulb is edible.

Specimens examined: Balochistan, Zhob district, Qamardin Karez, Tahir Khan , 16 May, 2019 ( RAW100808 ).

This species also belongs to A. subg. Melanocrommyum sect. Thaumasioprason .

Figures

Figs. 7-11. Allium caroli-henrici Fig. 7: Specimen (Tariq Khan, RAW 100808), Fig. 8: Flower sections showing tepals, pistil and stamens, Fig. 9: Habit (Photo by Tahir Khan), Fig. 10.: Bulb, Fig. 11: Flower section showing tepals and filaments.

Fig. 17. Distribution of Allium caroli-henrici, A. registanicum and A. zhobicum.