Ilex salicina Hand.-Mazz.

Shrubs evergreen, 1-2.5 m tall; bark gray-white. Branchlets castaneous, slender; current year’s branchlets longitudinally striate-sulcate, very sparsely puberulent; second to third year’s glabrescent; lenticels numerous, evident; leaf scars semicircular; terminal buds conical, scales sparse, puberulent. Stipules minute, deltoid; petiole 6-10 mm, abaxially rugose, glabrous, adaxially longitudinally and deeply sulcate; leaf blade abaxially greenish, adaxially deep green, shiny, linear-lanceolate, 4.5-12 × 0.8-2.2 cm, leathery, abaxially punctate, both surfaces glabrous, midvein impressed adaxially, lateral veins 9-12 pairs, anastomosing near margin, evident abaxially, obscure adaxially, reticulate veins evident abaxially, base cuneate, margin entire, recurved, apex acuminate. Inflorescences: cymes, pseudofasciculate, axillary on second year’s branchlets, often with abortive terminal buds, rarely with active ones, then cymes pseudoracemose or pseudopaniculate; central rachis ca. 6 mm, puberulent; bract ovate, puberulent, apex acute; flowers white, fragrant, 4-6-merous. Male inflorescences: cymes of order 1-3, 1-4-flowered; peduncles 8-10 mm, puberulent; pedicels 2-3 mm; bracteoles 2, basal, or absent; calyx cuplike, ca. 3 mm in diam., puberulent, shallowly 6-lobed, lobes orbicular, ciliate; corolla rotate, ca. 7 mm in diam., petals oblong, ca. 3 mm, basally slightly connate; stamens ca. as long as petals, anthers ovoid; rudimentary ovary subovoid, apex obtuse, inconspicuously 6-lobed. Female inflorescences: cymes of order 1(or 2), 1(-3)-flowered; pedicels 1-2 cm, puberulent; calyx as in male flowers; corolla choripetalous, petals oblong, ca. 3 mm; staminodes ca. 1/3 as long as petals, sterile anthers sagittate; ovary globose-ovoid, ca. 2 mm in diam., styles ca. 1 mm, stigma capitate, pubescent. Fruit red, globose, ca. 6 mm in diam.; fruiting pedicel 1-2 cm; persistent calyx explanate, ca. 5 mm in diam., lobes orbicular, ciliate; persistent stigma columnar-mammilliform; pyrenes 4-6, ellipsoidal, 4-5 mm, ca. 2 mm in diam., both ends pointed, abaxially longitudinally 3- or 4-ridged, not sulcate, laterally smooth or 1-ridged, endocarp leathery. Fl. Apr, fr. Jul-Oct.

S Guangxi [N Vietnam].

Sparse forests, shrubby areas, mountain slopes; 200-300 m.