Tab. 7925. 

 SPH^ROCODON obtusifolium. 



Native of Tropical Africa. 



Nat. Ord. Asclepiadace^e. — Tribe Marsde.vie^. 

 Genus SpiiiEaocoDON, Linn. {Benth. et Hook. f. Gen. Plant, vol. ii. p. 772.) 



Spii.tROCODON, obtusifolium ; planta lignosa caudice nano incrassato perenni, 

 caulibus annuis (vel interdum perennis?) nunc (hospitornm absentia P) 

 suberectia vel vagantibus nunc volubilibus subsimplicibns florentibus 1-3 

 ped. longis pubescentibus, internodii3 foliis saapiua brevioribus (fere 

 semper in exemplariis agrestibus), foliis distincte petiolatis molliter 

 chartaceis eircumscriptione variabilibus ellipticis ovato-oblongia ovatis 

 vel obovato-oblongis saspius 1J-3 poll, longis plus minusve acuminatia 

 vel utrinque rotundatia praasipue subtus secus venas pauoas primariaa 

 pubescentibus, cymis umbelliformibus ad nodos solitariia breviter pedun- 

 culatis 5-15 floris pubescentibus, bracteis minutis, floribus rubro-purpureis 

 6-8 lin. diametro pendulis, pedicellis gracilibus 4-8 lin. longis, calycis 

 pubescentis segmentis lineari-lanceolatis acutis circiter 2 Tin. longis, 

 corollse campanulatae puberulaa lobis deltoideis acutis tubo paullo breviori- 

 bus demum recurvis, coronae squamis 5 parvis glanduliformibua tubo 

 stamineo supra basin adnatis, staminibus basi corolla? affixis tilamentis 

 in tubum connatis, antheris erectis, polliniis in qnoque loculo aolitaiiis 

 caudiculia gracillimis, fructu ignoto. 



S. obtusifolium, Benth. in Rook. Ic PI. vol. xii. p. 78, t. 1190. N. E. Brown 

 in Fl. Trop. Afr. vol. iv. p. 412. Hiern in Cat. Afr. PI. Welw. vol. i. 

 p. 692. K. Schum. in Engl. Pfl. Ost. Afr. 0. p. 326, et in Engl. & Prantl, 

 Pflanzenf. vol. iv. pars 2, p. 283, fig. 85. 



S. natalense, Benth. in Hooh. Jc. PI. vol. xii. p. 79. 



S. caffrum, Schlechter in Joum. Bot. 1895, p. 339. 



Tylophora caffra, Meisn. in Hook. Lond. Joum. Bot. vol. ii. (1843), p. 542— 

 errore, 442. 



Crongronema Welwitscbii, K. Schum. in Engl. Bot. Jahrb. vol. xvii. p. 145. 



Sphserocodon is a somewhat obscure African genus, of 

 which the fruit is unknown. A second species, 8. melan- 

 anthus, N. E. Brown, is recorded from W. tropical Africa. 

 S. obtusifolium, Benth., inhabits both western and eastern 

 regions, ranging in the east from Nile Land to Natal. 



The plant figured was raised from seed sent to Kew 

 from Namasi, Nyasa Land, in 1897, by Mr. Kenneth J. 

 Cameron, who also sent a dried specimen at the same time. 

 The cultivated plant is so much more vigorous than the 

 wild, and the flowers so much larger, that they might be 

 taken for different species. All the wild specimens are 

 November 1st, 1903. 



