384 A FLORA OF MANILA 
Rather commonly cultivated, frequently spontaneous, fi. all the year; 
widely distributed in the Philippines and thoroughly naturalized. A native 
of tropical America, now found in many other tropical and warm countries, 
cultivated or wild. 
4. CALONYCTION Choisy 
Large, herbaceous, twining vines, the stems usually muricate. Leaves 
large, cordate, entire or angled. Flowers solitary or in few-flowered cymes. 
Sepals 5, smooth, usually prominently awned, the outer ones sometimes 
smaller than the inner. Corolla large, salver-shaped, usually pure-white, 
the tube narrow-cylindric, the limb plicate. Ovary 2-celled, cells 2-ovuled; 
style filiform. Stamens 5, somewhat exserted. Capsule 4-valved, 4-seeded. 
(Greek “beautiful” and “night” alluding to the large flowers which open at 
night.) 
Species 6 or 7 all or mostly in tropical America, 2 ‘or 3 now wide-spread 
in the tropics of the Old World. 
Sepals prominently awned; stems usually muricate................ 1. C. aculeatum 
Sepals obtuse, not awned or only slightly apiculate; stems glabrous. 
2. C. album 
1. C. ACULEATUM (L.) House. (C. bona-nox Boj.). Moon Flower. 
An extensively climbing, twining, glabrous, vine, reaching a length of 
10 m or more. Stems green, more or less muricate, or nearly smooth. 
Leaves ovate, entire or somewhat angled or lobed, sharply acuminate, base 
cordate, 14 to 20cm long. Peduncles axillary, solitary, long, 1- to 5-flowered. 
Sepals in flower green, ovate, long-awned, about 2 cm long. Corolla-tube 
greenish-white, 8 to 10 cm long, about 6 mm in diameter, the limb spreading, 
about 15 cm in diameter, white, the plaits greenish. Fruit ovoid, pointed, 
about 3 cm long, surrounded at the base by the accrescent sepals, the ped- 
icels much-thickened. (FI. Filip. pl. 332.) 
Occasional in thickets, fl. Aug—March; widely distributed in the Philip- 
pines, throughly naturalized. A native of tropical America, now widely 
distributed in the tropics in cultivation and as a nauralized plant. The 
flowers open at night only and close shortly after dawn. 
2. C. ALBUM (L.) House. 
A scandent, somewhat woody, twining vine of indefinite length, glabrous, 
stems smooth or sometimes muricate. Leaves orbicular-ovate, entire, acu- 
minate, base prominently cordate, 9 to 18 cm long. Peduncles axillary, 
short or somewhat elongated, 1- to 3-fliowered. Sepals green, orbicular- 
ovate, imbricate, 1.5 to 2 cm long, rounded, sometimes minutely apiculate, 
enlarged in fruit. Corolla white, the tube cylindric, about 6 cm long, 8 
mm in diameter, the limb spreading. Capsule globose, about 2 cm in 
diameter. 
In thickets, Pasay, Tondo, etc., occasional, fl. Oct—Jan.; not common in 
the Philippines. Tropics of both hemispheres. 
5. OPERCULINA Manso 
Large herbaceous climbers, the stems, peduncles, and petioles usually 
winged. Leaves large, entire or palmately lobed. Flowers large, axillary, 
solitary or in few-flowered cymes. Sepals 5, large, accrescent in fruit. 
Corolla campanulate, the tube with 5 vertical, smooth bands. Stamens 5; 
filaments filiform. Ovary 2-celled, 4-ovuled. Fruit a capsule enclosed by 
