Manihot grahamii

Hooker

Icon. Pl. 6: plate 530. 1843.

Common names: Hardy tapioca Graham's manihot or cassava
IntroducedIllustrated
Treatment appears in FNA Volume 12. Treatment on page 195. Mentioned on page 193.

Shrubs or trees, 2–6 [–7] m. Roots not thickened. Stems erect, angled when young; nodes not swollen; leaf and stipule-scars not elevated. Leaves deciduous; stipules linear, remotely serrate; petiole 5–33 cm; blade basally attached, 5–13-lobed, median and adjacent lobes with pair of weakly defined rounded secondary lobes distal to middle, lateral lobes without secondary lobes, median lobe 5–24 cm, margins neither thickened nor revolute, entire, apex acuminate, surface glabrous, abaxial smooth. Inflorescences axillary, panicles, to 30 cm. Pedicels: staminate 4–10 mm; pistillate 10–40 mm in fruit, straight. Staminate flowers: calyx campanulate, 10–15 mm, lobes erect or spreading; stamens 10. Capsules 1.8 cm, smooth, not winged. Seeds oblong, 10–12 mm.


Phenology: Flowering Apr–Aug; fruiting Jun–Sep.
Habitat: Disturbed areas, spreading from cultivation.
Elevation: 0–600 m.

Distribution

Introduced; Ala., Ark., Fla., Ga., La., Miss., Tex., South America

Discussion

Manihot grahamii is native to northern Argentina, southeastern Brazil, Paraguay, and Uruguay, and is sometimes cultivated for its distinctive, attractive foliage. The flowers are relatively inconspicuous, but are much-visited by bees. This is the most cold-tolerant Manihot species; above-ground stems survive light frosts and if severe cold kills the aerial shoot system outright, new stems can regenerate from underground parts. It survives well and self-sows in garden settings as far north as tidewater Virginia; northern limits for the persistence of plants escaping from cultivation have yet to be established. In addition to characteristics noted in the key, herbarium specimens frequently exhibit contracted petiole bases.

Selected References

None.

Lower Taxa

None.

"elongating" is not a number."/2" is not declared as a valid unit of measurement for this property.

... more about "Manihot grahamii"
acuminate +
W. John Hayden +
Hooker +
5-13-lobed +
campanulate +
1 cm10 mm <br />0.01 m <br /> (?) +  and 1.5 cm15 mm <br />0.015 m <br /> (?) +
1.8 cm18 mm <br />0.018 m <br /> (?) +
Hardy tapioca +  and Graham's manihot or cassava +
Ala. +, Ark. +, Fla. +, Ga. +, La. +, Miss. +, Tex. +  and South America +
0–600 m. +
subtending +
Disturbed areas, spreading from cultivation. +
deciduous +
not elevated +
spreading +  and erect +
lobed;undivided +
palmate +  and pinnate +
serrate +, repand +  and entire +
5 cm50 mm <br />0.05 m <br /> (24 cm240 mm <br />0.24 m <br />) +
intrastaminal +
unlobed +, lobed +, annular +  and cushion--shaped +
not swollen +
distal;middle +
0 cm0 mm <br />0 m <br /> (30 cm300 mm <br />0.3 m <br />) +
pistillate +  and staminate +
1 cm10 mm <br />0.01 m <br /> (4 cm40 mm <br />0.04 m <br />) +
connate;distinct +
5 cm50 mm <br />0.05 m <br /> (33 cm330 mm <br />0.33 m <br />) +
Flowering Apr–Aug +  and fruiting Jun–Sep. +
not thickened +
1 cm10 mm <br />0.01 m <br /> (1.2 cm12 mm <br />0.012 m <br />) +
distinct +  and connate +
0.7 cm7 mm <br />0.007 m <br /> (2 cm20 mm <br />0.02 m <br />) +
Introduced +  and Illustrated +
papillate +
flabellate +
Manihot grahamii +
species +
600 cm6,000 mm <br />6 m <br /> (700 cm7,000 mm <br />7 m <br />) +
tree +  and shrub +
dioecious +  and monoecious +