Flora of New Zealand Series

Primary root short-lived; adventitious roots in a prominent circle around the primary root scar cavity. Stem very short, simple, with dense, long, hairy tuft. Lvs in flat rosettes, radical, sessile, 10-30-(36) × 0.4-1-(1.8) mm, linear-subulate or narrow-linear, subcoriaceous, glabrous or with scattered marginal hairs more numerous towards the base, entire or with distant obtuse teeth; main vein 1; apex obtuse. Scape 1.5-11 mm long at flowering, scarcely elongating at fruiting, glabrous, mostly hidden by stem hairs. Fls solitary, glabrous. Bracts and sepals 2-5.5 mm long, ovate-lanceolate to broadly ovate-elliptic, glabrous, membranous except for herbaceous keel. Corolla tube 2-3 mm long; lobes 1.7-2.5 × c. 0.5 mm, ± elliptic-ovate. Capsule (2.5)-4.5-11 × 2.5-3.5 mm, ellipsoid. Seeds 5-9, 1-1.8 mm long, ± ellipsoid or ovoidellipsoid but somewhat irregular and flattened.

S.: Inland Kaikoura Range and Saxton R. area (Marlborough), Mt Somers and Two Thumb Range (Canterbury), Mt Cardrona (C. Otago).

Endemic.

Peat or acid bogs at c. 1500 m.

FL Jan-Mar.

P. obconica is related to the much more widespread P. triandra but is distinguished from it by the large, funnel-shaped, basal part of the capsule.