Balanophora dioica R.Br. ex Royle, Ill. Bot. Himal. Mts. 330 1836. (Syn: Balanophora affinis Griff.; Balanophora alveolata Griff.; Balanophora hookeriana Hemsl.); . Common name: Himalayan Balanophora . Dioecious annual roots parasites. Rootstock tuberous, lobed, 4-6 cm in diameter. Leaves absent, Stem glabrous, fleshy, yellowish-white, unbranched, 10-15 cm long, stout, covered with laxly imbricated scaly leaves. Male flowers densely crowded in an ovoid or club shaped head or inflorescence at the top of stem. Head 5-7 cm long. Flowers unisexual, small. Perianth up to 0.7 cm long, trilobed, tube of the perianth sunk in cavities of the head. Staminal column short, anthers bursting by curved slit. Flowering and fruiting: November-April Shola forests India and Myanmar    Balanophora Sp.. : Attachments (2). 6 posts by 3 authors. This one is a Parasitic plant photographed at Mizoram (November-2008). Looks like Balanophora indica Sorry, correction- it should be Balanophora dioica (not indica). Attaching pictures of B. dioica I photographed in Arunachal. It shows both male and female inflo. The ones seen in … picture are only male flowers. These two species differ in the shape of the female inflores. Thanks a lot. Even … has also indicated earlier that this could be B.dioca.
I hope attached images may be Balanophora dioica R.Br. ex Royle. Please validate. Date :09.10.2013 Location: Shillong, Meghalaya Family : Balanophoraceae Genus & species : Balanophora dioica R.Br. ex Royle. Habitat: Grows wild, parasitic on roots of forest tree; total root parasite Habit : Herb Flower : Small, white Fruits : Not seen Vow.. so nice series of Pics…. Thank you for showing this Balanophora species. Balanophora are rare sight in Uttarakhand. One species exist here but never seen in nature.   AS, April, 2023/01 unknown sp. for identification: 2 high res. images. Have a look pl. Location: Kurung Kumey, Arunachal Pradesh, India Alt: ca. 1200 m. Date: 30.10.2022 Habitat: In forest floor under shady open places. Check for Balanophora sps. Appears close to images at I guess the correct ID ! .   MS,Oct.,2023/13 Balanophora sp. ? for id: 2 images. Location : Hmuifang, Mizoram Altitude : ca.1,450 m Date : 27-10-2023 Habit : Herb Habitat : Wild Balanophora dioica R.Br. ex Royle
please identify this plant. : 6 posts by 4 authors. Attachments (3) Balanophora sp. root parasite I tried to identify the species from literature but failed to assign the name from the images. Was it clicked in Nagaland ? Pl. mention the date also. Pl. check with images at Balanophora dioica R.Br. ex Royle as per comparative images at Balanophora This reminds me of a Balanophora species. The peduncles have not yet developed and are still hidden inside the bracts. Where was it taken from? Please find out more mature plants in the vicinity. Only one sp. found in Nagaland, Balanophora dioica R.Br. ex Royle if it is from there. Three more sps. have got distribution in Nagaland. https://ppbc.iplant.cn/sp/12236 : Looks a match. Balanophora polyandra Griff. : No match https://www.gbif.org/species/4195229 : Seems no match. . References: The Plant List GRIN Annotated checklist of the flowering plants of Nepal Flora of China Flowers of India India Biodiversity Portal |
Balanophora dioica
Updated on August 11, 2025