Vitex canescens

Vitex canescens Kurz, J. Asiat. Soc. Bengal, Pt. 2, Nat. Hist. 42(2): 101 1873. (Syn: Vitex kweichowensis C.Pei);
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S. China to Tropical Asia: Assam, Bangladesh, Cambodia, China South-Central, China Southeast, East Himalaya, Laos, Myanmar, New Guinea, Thailand, Tibet, Vietnam as per POWO;
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A tree about 20-50 ft tall often reaching to a girth of about 6 ft. Bark grayish brown, rough, longitudinally furrowed, 1.5 cm thick, light cream inside turning brown, stem buttressed, branchlets slightly sulcate between the angles, obtusely quadrangular, slightly pubescent, nodes annulate, young parts pubescent, glabrous when mature. Leaves palmately compound with 3-5 foliolate, leaflets ovate-lanceolate or lanceolate-elliptic, middle leaflets 11-18 × 6-8 cm across, lateral leaflets 10-14 x 5-7 cm across, petiolules slender, stout, about 1-3 cm long, petiolules of the last lateral pairs shortest, base acute or obtuse, margin entire, apex acute to shallow acuminate, chartaceous, scabrid, dark green glabrous above, paler grandular, densely pubescent beneath, lateral veins 10-12 on either side of the midrib, ascending obscure, impressed above, prominent, densely pubescent on midrib beneath, reticulate veinlets, petiole stout, pubescent, about 5-12 cm long. Inflorescence supra-axillary and terminal thyrsoid panicles, above scars of fallen leaves with interrupted branches or small grey pubescent cymes, about 20-35 cm long, peduncles, slender, obtusely quadrangular, pubescent, about 3-4 cm long. Flowers bisexual, numerous, dull white, pedicels about 2-4 mm long, Calyx campanulate, obscurely 5 toothed, teeth acute, densely pubescent outside, about 3 × 3 mm across, Corolla infundibular, 5 lobed, 2-lipped, cream or dull white, upper lip 2-lobed, lobes ovate, apex acute, lower lip 3 lobed, midlobes obovate, white, apex obtuse, about 3 x 2 mm across, lateral lobes oblong acute, Corolla tube narrow, about 2 x 1.2 mm across, densely villous at throat, glabrous outside. Stamens 4, didynamous, exserted, filaments slender, filiform, about 4-5 mm long, exserted, anthers oblong, 2-celled, Ovary bicarpellary, obovoid, apex villous, 1 × 1 mm across, style slender, about 7 mm long, stigma bilobed, subulate. Fruit drupaceous, globose, about 6 mm in diameter, green, glabrous, brownish black smooth when ripe, fruiting calyx cupular, pubescent, distinctly lobed.
Deciduous forests at an altitude below 2500 ft.
(Attributions: Ganeshaiah, K. N., UAS, Bangalore, India. Kailash, B. R., UAS & ATREE, Bangalore, India. Indian Bioresource Information Network (IBIN), Department of Biotechnology, New Delhi, India as per India Biodiversity Portal)
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