Ophiopogon elatior, a new species of Asparagaceae from Yunnan, China

Ophiopogon elatior from south-eastern Yunnan Province of China is described here as new to science. This species is morphologically similar to O. grandis, but differs from the latter species by leaf size (60-80 cm x 5-6 mm vs 25-55 cm x 7-11 mm), scape size (80-100 cm vs 15-20 cm), and flower color (purple-dotted vs white). Moreover, the new species can be easily distinguished from all known species of Ophiopogon with its erect and very tall scape highly overtopping the basal grass-like foliage.