Agarista hispidula
Agarista hispidula is a shrub of the heath family, Ericaceae, native to Brazil. It has small, leathery leaves and hairy, usually pink or reddish flowers.[1] Kew recognises it as a species of Agarista.[2]
Appearance
Judd's treatment describes an upright shrub commonly around one metre tall, but sometimes reaching two and a half metres. The leaves have heart-shaped bases and edges that roll towards the underside. The flower's joined petals form a short tube, sometimes widened into an urn shape.[1]
The Ibitipoca flora describes plants about one and a half metres tall, with densely hairy leaf undersides. Its pink to reddish flowers have petal tubes eight to nine millimetres long. Brown, hairy capsules follow the flowers. In that flora, the flower colour, dense hairs and absence of gland-tipped hairs help distinguish it from Agarista ericoides and A. chlorantha.[3]
Habitat and range
The species occurs in highland areas of Minas Gerais, Rio de Janeiro and São Paulo, and in Goiás. The Ibitipoca flora reports it often near watercourses. Within the park, it was recorded on rocky outcrops, with flowers and fruit collected in August 2014.[3] Judd gives a broader elevational range of 1,000–2,500 metres and habitats including low woodland, thickets, rocky ground and wet open places.[1]
Reproduction
A 2019 conference abstract reported experiments on seven plants at Ibitipoca, using 381 flowers across pollination treatments. Hand cross-pollination produced fruit in 50% of treated flowers, compared with 23% under natural pollination. The researchers interpreted their results as evidence of self-incompatibility and pollen limitation at that site. These findings come from a local experiment reported in an abstract, rather than a survey of the species throughout its range.[4]
Name
The species was named Amechania hispidula in 1839 and placed in Agarista in 1889. Leucothoe hispidula is another historical combination. Judd also includes Leucothoe breviflora, Agarista brevifolia and Leucothoe intermedia among its synonyms.[1]
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 Judd, W. S. Agarista hispidula. New York Botanical Garden, electronic treatment based on Flora Neotropica Monograph 66 (1995). Accessed 9 October 2026.
- ↑ Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Agarista: accepted species. Plants of the World Online. Accessed 9 October 2026.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Cabral, A., Romão, G. O. and Menini Neto, L. (2017). Ericaceae no Parque Estadual do Ibitipoca, Minas Gerais, Brasil. Boletim de Botânica da Universidade de São Paulo 35, 75–93; account 1.4, pp.80–81; doi:10.11606/issn.2316-9052.v35ip75-93. Accessed 9 October 2026.
- ↑ Arenas, M. D., Lima, H. A. and Rodarte, A. T. A. (2019). Biologia Reprodutiva em três espécies de Agarista D. Don ex G. Don (Ericaceae) em Vegetação de Campo Rupestre. Abstract in the proceedings of the 70th Congresso Nacional de Botânica, Maceió, p.130. Accessed 9 October 2026.