超长柄茶 Camellia longissima Hung T.Chang & S.Ye LiangCamellia longissima

Camellia longissima, Subgenus Thea, Sect. Longissima, Chang Hung-ta and Bruce Bartholomew (1984). Camellias, p.153: Camellia longissima Chang & Liang in Chang, Acta Sci. Nat. Univ. Sunyatseni, monogr. ser. 1: 124. 1981.Gao Jiyin, Clifford R. Parks, Du Yueqiang, 2005, Collected Species of the Genus Camellia an Illustrated Outline，p.165. 

[Description] Shrub, branchlets glabrous, old branches grey. Leaves membranous, elliptic or sometimes obovate, 14-16. 5 cm long, 6-8.5 cm wide, apices abruptly acute with a ca. 1cm long acumen, bases nearly rounded or sometimes cuneate, both surfaces dull brown in the dry state, glabrous; lateral veins14-19 pairs, almost perpendicular to the midvein, slightly raised on both surfaces; reticulating veins not conspicuous; margins serrulate, teeth separation 2-3 mm; petioles 4-7 mm long glabrous. Flowers 1-3, terminal or axillary, long pedicellate; pedicels ca. 4 cm long, lower region slender, upper region slightly thicker, glabrous; bracts 2, born on the middle of the pedicel, separated by 6-7mm, early deciduous; sepals 5, broadly ovate or orbicular, 5 mm long, glabrous; petals 8, free, elliptic-obovate, ca. 1 cm long, 7-8 mm wide, glabrous; stamens 7-8 mm long, free, glabrous; ovaries 3-locular, glabrous; styles 2 mm long, apices shallowly 3-cleft. This species can be easily identified by the membranous leaves, numerous lateral veins perpendicular to the mid-vein, flowers long-pedicellate, styles and petals glabrous, stamens free, ovaries 3-locular and glabrous, and styles short.

Zhao (2024): Camellia longissima Hung T. Chang & S. Ye Liang in Hung T. Chang, Taxon. Gen. Camellia 124. 1981—Holotype: China. Guangxi: Longzhou, 440 m, 4 October 1956, Z.J. Li 3273 (IBSC 0003519!; isotype: IBK 00118623!).

New branchlets and leaf buds glabrous. Leaf blade obovate to elliptic, 7–20 × 3–9 cm, both surfaces glabrous, base cuneate. Flower ca. 2.5 cm in diameter. Pedicel 1.7–4 cm long, glabrous. Sepals 2.5–5 × 3–6 mm, outside glabrous, inside sericeous. Petals outside glabrous, inside sericeous, glabrescent, or glabrous. Ovary glabrous. Style apically 3-lobed, glabrous. Fruit not seen. Fl. November to December.

Distribution. China: Guangxi.

Notes. Molecular phylogenetic analysis supported that C. longissima and other tea plants consisted of a monophyletic group, and the species was closely related with C. taliensis (W.W. Sm.) Melch. (Zhao et al. 2023). Camellia longissima bears a long pedicel, which was valued by Chang (1981b) and Ming (2000) as a diagnostic character at the sectional rank. However, the length of the pedicel may vary in tea plants. For instance, C. sinensis usually bears a pedicel less than 1 cm long; occasionally, under cultivation it can produce a more than 2-cm-long pedicel. Though bearing a relatively long pedicel, neither C. sect. Longipedicellata Hung T. Chang nor sect. Longissima was suggested to be monophyletic in the molecular phylogenetic analysis (Zhao et al. 2023).

Camellia longissima was endemic to Longzhou, Guangxi. I have not seen a specimen of its natural plant collected in recent 30 years, nor have I found or heard its occurrence in the wild. Regardless of its potential value in tea breeding, conservation and propagation should be the top priority of C. longissima to avoid extinction.

Camellia longissima has most recently been assessed for The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species in 2015. Camellia longissima is listed as Near Threatened.

超长柄茶Cameilia longissima Chang et S.Y. Liang, sp. nov. 张宏达，1981. 《山茶属植物的系统研究》第124页。【标本】广西：龙津，板闭，海拔440米，山谷密林下，灌木，1956年10月4日，李治基3273(模式标本 Typus! in Bot, Inst. Austro-Sin.)；同地，李萌昆313；同地，广西林科所5603273；同地，梁盛业7001213,。高继银、帕克斯、杜跃强，2005. 《山茶属植物主要原种彩色图集》浙江科学技术出版社，第165页。

灌木，小枝无毛，老枝呈灰色。叶片膜状，椭圆形，有时倒卵形，14-16。长5厘米，宽6-8.5厘米，顶端突变锐利，尖锐约1厘米长，基部几乎圆形或有时呈楔形，干燥时两面呈暗棕色，无毛;侧脉14-19对，几乎垂直于中脉，两面略微隆起;网状静脉不显眼;边缘锯齿状，齿距2-3毫米;叶柄长4-7毫米，无毛。花序1-3，顶端或腋生，长花梗;花梗长约4厘米，下部细长，上部稍厚，无毛;苞片2，生于花梗中部，间距6-7毫米，早落叶;萼片5，宽卵形或环状，长5毫米，无毛;花瓣8片，自由，椭圆形倒卵形，约1厘米长，7-8毫米宽，无毛;雄蕊长7-8毫米，游离，无毛;子房为3室，无毛;花柱长2毫米，顶端浅3裂。该物种可通过膜状叶片、多条与中脉垂直的侧脉、花长柄、花柱和花瓣无毛、无雄蕊、子房三室且无毛、花柱短而易于辨认。
赵东伟（2024）：分子系统发育分析支持超长柄茶及其他茶树属于单系群，且该物种与大理茶（C. taliensis）关系密切。赵东伟等（2023）超长柄茶具有较长的花梗，张宏达(1981b）和闵天禄（2000）将其视为分组的鉴定依据。然而，茶树的花梗长度可能有所不同。例如，C. sinensis通常具有小于1厘米长的花梗; 偶尔，在栽培下，它能长出超过2厘米的花梗。虽然两个组都有较长的花梗，但这2组长柄茶组Longipedicellata 和超长柄茶组Longissima在分子系统发育分析中都不被认为是单系群。

超长柄茶最近一次于 2015年进行了IUCN濒危等级评估，被评为近危 Near Threatened（NT）。