Dischidia is a genus of plants in the Milkweed family, Asclepiadaceae

Asclepiadaceae

According to APG II, the Asclepiadaceae is a former plant family now treated as a subfamily in the Apocynaceae...

. It comprises about 80 known species which all grow as epiphyte

Epiphyte

An epiphyte is a plant that grows upon another plant non-parasitically or sometimes upon some other object , derives its moisture and nutrients from the air and rain and sometimes from debris accumulating around it, and is found in the temperate zone and in the...

s and are native to tropical areas of China, India and most areas of Indo-China. Dischidia are closely aligned with the sister genus Hoya

Hoya

Hoya is a genus of 200-300 species of tropical plants in the family Apocynaceae , fomerly considered to be in the Asclepiadaceae...

. Unlike Hoya, the genus Dischidia, is poorly known and has not been studied as closely.

Most Dischidia grow in arboreal ant nests of different species and some have developed a symbiotic relationship where the plant has developed modified leaves to either provide housing or storage. Of these there are two types of modification to the leaves.
Three species develop bullate leaves which are hollow root-filled structures. These are Dischidia complex Griff, Dischidia major (Vahl) Merr. and Dischidia vidalii Becc. Both produce normal leaves (cordate

Leaf shape

In botany, leaf shape is characterised with the following terms :* Acicular : Slender and pointed, needle-like* Acuminate : Tapering to a long point...

 in shape) in addition to the bullate leaves. These bullate leaves are formed when the outer margins of a leaf stop growing while the center of the leaf continues to grow. As time progresses the leaf margins curl under to close the gap which creates a small hole.

A number of species develop imbricate leaves which hold tightly to the growing surface. The underside of the leaf has a space which is filled with roots that the ants take advantage of. Examples of these speces are Dischidia astephana Scort. ex King & Gamble, Dichidia imbricata (BL)Steud. and Dischidia platyphylla Schlecther, but there are many more. Plants with this type of growth habit are sometimes called Shingle Plants, which are given this name because the leaves tend to overlap as the grow up or down the surface and give the appearance of shingle

Roof shingle

Roof shingles are a roof covering consisting of individual overlapping elements. These elements are typically flat rectangular shapes laid in rows from the bottom edge of the roof up, with each successive higher row overlapping the joints in the row below...

s on a roof.

Of the 80 species in the genus, there are few in widespread cultivation. The species list below is a preliminary list of species that have been named in some source but may not be validly published. Therefore it should be viewed as a working list.

Species list

• Dischidia acuminata Costantin
• Dischidia acutifolia Maingay
• Dischidia apoensis Elmer. (Philippines)
• Dischidia albida Griff.
• Dischidia albiflora
• Dischidia astephana Scort. ex King & Gamble
• Dischidia australis Tsiang & P. T. Li
• Dischidia balansae Costantin
• Dischidia bengalensis Colebr.
• Dischidia calva Pearson
• Dischidia chinensis Champ. ex Benth.
• Dischidia chinghungensis Tsiang & P. T. Li
• Dischidia cleistantha Livsh. (Philippines)
• Dischidia cochleata
• Dischidia collyris Wall.
• Dischidia cominsii Hook.
• Dischidia complex Griff. (Philippines)
• Dischidia cornuta Livsh.
• Dischidia cristata
• Dischidia diphylla
  Dischidia diphylla
  Dischidia diphylla was described by Adolph Daniel Edward Elmer but never validly published since Elmer failed to include Latin diagnoses or descriptions for the species he described after 1934....
  
  Elmer
• Dischidia dolichantha Schltr.
• Dischidia dohtii Tran & Livsh.
• Dischidia elmerii (Philippines)
• Dischidia formosana Maxim.
• Dischidia fruticulosa Ridley
• Dischidia griffithii
• Dischidia hirsuta Decne. (Philippines)
• Dischidia imbricata (Blume) Decne. (syn. Hoya imbricata)
• Dischidia khasiana Hook.f.
• Dischidia irosenesis (Philippines)
• Dischidia lancifolia Ridley
• Dischidia lanceolata (Blume) Decne. (Philippines)
• Dischidia latifolia
• Dischidia littoalis
• Dischidia livida
• Dischidia longepedunculata
• Dischidia major (Vahl) Merr. (Philippines)
• Dischidia merrillii Becc. (Philippines)
• Dischidia melanesica Fosberg
• Dischidia milnei Hemsl.
• Dischidia nummularia R.Br.
• Dischidia oiantha (Philippines)
• Dischidia ovata Benth.
• Dischidia pilaselloides
• Dischidia platyphylla Schlecther
• Dischidia punctata Decne
• Dischidia purpurea Merrill.
• Dischidia rafflesiana Wall.
  Nathaniel Wallich
  Nathaniel Wallich was a surgeon and botanist of Danish origin who worked in India initially in the Danish settlement near Calcutta and later joined the East India Company...
  
  
• Dischidia rhombifolia
• Dischidia rimicola Kerr
• Dischidia rosea Schl.
• Dischidia ruscifolia Decne. (Philippines)
• Dischidia sagittata Decne.
• Dischidia scortechinii King & Gamble
• Dischidia singularis Craib
• Dischidia sorsoganensis Elmer. (Philippines)
• Dischidia superba Rintz
• Dischidia tonkinensis
• Dischidia truncata
• Dischidia vadosa Rintz
• Dischidia vidalii Becc. (Philippines)