( 4026 ) 

 Osbeckia Chinensis. Chinese Osbeckia. 



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Class and Order. 

 Decandria Monogynia. 



( Nat. Ord. — Melastomace*. ) 



Generic Character. 



Calycis tufois ovatus saepius setis stellatis aut pube stel- 

 lata vestitus ; lobi 4—5 persistentes aut decidui ; appen- 

 dices inter lobos extus ortae forma et rnagnitudine vari*. 

 Petala 4—5. Stamina 8—10, filamentis glabris, anthens 

 subaequalibus breve rostratis connective) basi breve biaun- 

 cnlato. Ovarium apice setosum. Capsula 4— 5-loculans. 

 Semina cochleata.— Herba3 aut scepius suffrutices, Arneri- 

 cani, Africani, aut Asiatici. Folia integerrima 3—5 nervia. 

 Plores terminates. D C. 



Specific Character and Synonyms. 



Osbeckia Chinensis; herbacea, caule tetraquetro, foliis 

 subsessilibus lanceolato-oblongis 3-nervns hispidulis 

 subcrenulatis, floribus cymosis tenninalibus paucis, 

 calycis haemisphzerici lobis 4—5 lineanbus acntis seto- 

 sis deciduis. „ _ , ._ „ 



Osbeckia Chinensis. Linn. Sp. PL p. 490. Osbecks Voy 

 (Engl, ed.) p. 342. t. 2. Sot. Reg. t. 542 Be 

 Cand. Prodr v. 3. p. 141. Spreng. Syst. Veget. v. 2. 

 p. 312. 



A very lovely plant, with spreading branches, dark co- 

 loured copious foliage, and bearing abundance of flowers 

 in the spring months when kept in a moist warm stove. It 

 is considered to be identical with the plant ot Loureiro 

 and Osbeck, and consequently of Linn^us ; though I have 

 not the means of identifying this point. Nor do I know 

 through what channel it was first introduced to our gar- 



