Mussaenda philippica
(Queen of Philippines)

Preferred Common Name

• Queen of Philippines

International Common Names

• English: Bangkok rose; Buddha's lamp; Philippine mussaenda; Queen Sirikit

Local Common Names

• Micronesia: amerok; batsch; petch
• Palau: cherecheroi; ercherio; ereroi
• Philippines: Doña Aurora

• Domain: Eukaryota
•     Kingdom: Plantae
•         Phylum: Spermatophyta
•             Subphylum: Angiospermae
•                 Class: Dicotyledonae
•                     Order: Gentianales
•                         Family: Rubiaceae
•                             Genus: Mussaenda
•                                 Species: Mussaenda philippica

The family Rubiaceae comprises 611 genera and about 13,150 species distributed worldwide, but largely tropical. This family is especially diverse in Madagascar and the Andes (Davis et al., 2009; Stevens, 2017). Mussaenda is a tropical Old World genus consisting of about 185-200 species. Many species of Mussaenda are cultivated in gardens all over the world because of their resilience and long blooming period throughout almost the entire year. M. philippica is apparently the most commonly cultivated species and has numerous cultivar forms (Puff, 2007). More than 20 Mussaenda hybrids have been derived from crossing M. philippica with the African M. erythrophylla. These hybrids are known for their splendid and iridescent, enlarged calyx lobes (Alejandro et al., 2016). In the last taxonomic revision of the Philippine Mussaenda, three subspecific taxa for the species M. philippica are recognised (Alejandro et al., 2016): Mussaenda philippica var. aurorae, Mussaenda philippica var. philippica and Mussaenda philippica var. pubescens.

The following description is based on Fosberg et al. (1993). Large shrub or small tree, glabrous to minutely puberulent; leaves ovate-elliptic to elliptic, to 17 × 6 cm, strongly acuminate, base contracted to a slender petiole 1-1.5 cm long, veins 9 to 12 on a side; stipules sericeous, triangular, with a deeply bifid acumen; panicle about 4 times trichotomous, densely sericeous to soft-pubescent, bracts linear, bracteoles irregularly and inequally trifid, flowers apparently dioecious; calyx caducous, lobed almost to base, principal lobes 5, outer one greatly enlarged and showy on a few flowers, calyx usually somewhat less sericeous than cyme and hypanthium, small extra subulate lobes accompanying the enlarged leaf-like lobe, which is up to 9 cm long, broadly ovate, acuminate, somewhat cordate or rounded or obtuse at base, stipitate (“petiolate”), white, membranous, thinly sericeous, veins prominent; corolla 2-3 cm long, densely but shortly pubescent without, limb ovoid in bud, acuminate, tips of lobes separate, lobes ovate acuminate, bright yellow and densely puberulent within, centre of staminate flowers shortly bearded and throat densely yellow hirsute within, 7 mm long, tube glabrous within, 2 cm long, anthers 4-5 mm long, linear or subulate; pistillodes about 5-7 mm long, glabrous; pistillate corollas with tube and throat subequal, about 1 cm long, throat somewhat yellow puberulent within, no beard, tube glabrous within, antherodes subulate, 4 mm long; pistil with glabrous filiform style and subexserted stigma about 7 mm long, linear, bifid almost to base into slender blunt lobes papillate on inner surfaces and margins; fruit ellipsoid, 2 cm long, 13 mm wide at middle, thickly beset with white lenticels.

Soil drainage

• free

Soil reaction

• acid

Soil texture

• heavy
• light
• medium

Mussaenda philippica spreads by seeds. However, plants in cultivation rarely produce fruits and propagation is mostly by stem fragments and cuttings. In the Philippines, birds have been observed eating the ripe fruits of several Mussaenda species and may be important disseminators of the seeds (Alejandro et al., 2016).

Mussaenda philippica is a species of environmental concern because it can grow up to 8 m tall and has a wide spreading crown that may shade out other vegetation including native plant species (Alejandro et al., 2016; Randall, 2017; GRIIS, 2018). It has been listed as invasive and potentially invasive in Reunion, Seychelles and the Marshall Islands (Tassin et al., 2006; GRIIS, 2018) and as an environmental weed in Queensland, Australia (Atlas of Living Australia, 2018).

• Proved invasive outside its native range
• Highly adaptable to different environments
• Is a habitat generalist
• Tolerates, or benefits from, cultivation, browsing pressure, mutilation, fire etc
• Pioneering in disturbed areas
• Tolerant of shade
• Benefits from human association (i.e. it is a human commensal)
• Long lived
• Fast growing

• Reduced native biodiversity
• Threat to/ loss of native species

• Competition - monopolizing resources
• Competition - shading
• Hybridization
• Rapid growth
• Rooting

• Highly likely to be transported internationally deliberately

Mussaenda philippica is extensively grown as an ornamental in botanical gardens, parks, gardens and along roadsides, byways and highways (Puff, 2007; Ogbu, 2011; Alejandro et al., 2016; Ibironke and Victor, 2016). Leaves, flowers, fruits and sap are used in traditional Filipino and African medicine (Fosberg et al., 1993; Alejandro et al., 2016; Ibironke and Victor, 2016). In Nigeria, this species is used to treat dysentery, as an antidote for snakebites, affections of the chest and lungs and stomachache (Ibironke and Victor, 2016).