652 



GLORIOSA 



A. Segments (or petals) much crisped. 



guptrba, Linn. Climbing Lilt. Stem 5-10 ft. high: 

 Ivs. ovate-lanceolate ; segments 3-1 in. long and less 

 than an inch wide, opening yellow, but changing _t_o 

 yellow-red and deep scarlet. Africa, Asia. B.R. l:ii. 

 Gn. 38:781. R.B. 23:121. 



AA. Segments somewhat umlulate, but not crisped. 



simplex, Linn.(G. viriscens, Lindl. G.Pldnlii, Loud. I. 

 Fls. opening yellow, and remaining so in shade, but be- 

 coming deep yellow-red when exposed to the sun; wider 

 than in G. superha. barely undulate and wavy, and not 

 prolonged or hooked at the end as in the latter species. 

 Africa. B.M.2539. Var. grandiUora.Nichols. (i)/e»i(i«ica 

 grandifldra. Hook.), has fls. 8 in. across. B.M. 5210. 



G. Abyssinica. Rich. . said to be the largest-fld. species, seems 

 not to be in cult. L. H. B. 



GLOKY OF THE SNOW. Fanciful name for Chiono- 

 doxa . 



GLORY PEA. See Clianthus. 



GLOXINfiRA. Name given to hybrids of Gloxinia 

 (Sinningia) and Gesneria. See Gloxinia. 



GLOXINIA. The genus Gloxinia was founded by 

 L'Heritier in 1785( named in honor of P. B. Gloxin, a bota- 

 nist of Strassburg) upon G. maculata of Brazil. Early 

 in this century a related Brazilian plant was introduced, 

 and it attracted much attention: this plant was named 

 Gloxinia speciosa by Loddiges in his Botanical Cabinet 

 in 1817, and it was there figured. In the same year it 

 wa6 figured by Ker in the Botanical Register, and 

 also by Sims in the Botanical Magazine. Sims wrote 

 that the plant was "already to be found in most of 

 the large collections about town [London]." These 

 writers refer the plant to the Linna^an class Didynamia, 

 but Ker also suggests that it may belong to the Cam- 

 panulacesB. This Gloxinia speciosa was the forerunner 

 and leading parent of the garden Gloxinias, plants which 

 are now referred to the family Gesneraceffi; but it turns 

 out that the plant really belongs to Nees' genus Sinnin- 

 gia founded in 1825 on a Brazilian plant which he 

 named S. Helleri. All our garden Gloxinias are Sin- 

 ningias, but to gardeners they will ever be known as 

 Gloxinia; therefore, we will trace the evolution of them 

 here. The genus is one of the Gesneraeece. 



Gloxinia has no tubers : Sinningia has. Gloxinia has 

 a ring-like or annular disk about the ovary: Sinningia 

 has 5 distinct glands. The Sinningias are either stem- 

 less or stem-bearing, with a trumpet-shape or bell-shape 

 5-lobed and more or less 2-lipped corolla, a 5-angled or 

 5-winged calyx, 4 stamens attached to the base of the 

 corolla, and with anthers cohering at the tips in pairs, 

 and a single style with a concave or 2-lobed stigma. 

 The garden Gloxinias belong to the subgenus Ligeria 

 (subgenus of Sinningia), which has a short stem or 

 trunk, and a broad-limbed bell-shaped flower. 



The true Gloxinias are not florists' flowers, and they 

 are little known in cultivation. They are apparently not 

 in the American trade. The old G. maculata is figured in 

 the Garden 39:801 (p. 304), and it is probably to be 

 found in choice collections in the Old World. It pro- 

 duces knotty rootstocks, which, as well as the leaves, 

 may be used for propagation. It is also figured in B.M. 

 1191. G. glabrAta, Zucc, from Mex., is the G. glaltra, 

 Kort..Achimenes gloxiniw flora, Forkel, and Pleclopoma 

 gloxiniflorum, Haust. It is a steramy plant, with white 

 fls. with yellow-spotted throat. (B.M. 4430, as G. fimbri- 

 rt/<i,Hort. ) Plectopoma is now referred to Gloxinia. A 

 few forms of this were once offered by Saul, but, with 

 the exception of P. gloxiniflorum, they are probably all 

 garden forms. 



The garden Gloxinias (genus Sinningia) are nearly 

 stemless plants, producing several or many very showy 

 bell-like fls. each on a long stem. Gloxinia speciosa 

 originally had drooping fls., but the result of continued 

 breeding has produced a race with fls. nearly or quite 

 erect (Figs. 918, 919). The deep bell of the Gloxinia 

 is very rich and beautiful, and the erect position is 

 a decided gain. The fls. also have been increased in 

 size and number, and varied in shape and markings ; 



GLOXINIA 



the Ivs. also have become marked with gray or white. 

 The color of the original Gloxinia speciosa was appar- 

 ently a nearly uniform purple. The modern races have 

 colors in white, red, purple and all intermediate shades : 

 some are blotched, and others are fine-spotted or sprin- 

 kled with darker shades. It is probable that the larger 



part of the evolution in the common greenhouse Glox- 

 inia is a direct development from the old G. speciosa, 

 but hybrid ity has played an important part. One of the 

 earliest recorded series of hybrids (1844) was with Sin- 

 ningia guttata, which is a plant with an upright stem 

 and bearing rather small spotted fls. In the axils of the 

 Ivs. (B.R. 13:1112). The issue of this cross showed lit- 

 tle effect of the S. guttata, except a distinct branching 

 habit in some of the plants (B.R. 30:48). It is possible, 

 however, that S. guttata has had something to do with 

 the evolution of the spots on the present-day flower, 

 although the original G. speciosa was striped and 

 blotched in the throat. The student who wishes to trace 

 some of the forms of garden Gloxinias may look up the 

 following portraits : B.M. 1937, speciosa itself ; B.M. 

 3200, var. albiflora; B.M. 3934, var. macropbylla varie- 

 gata; B.M. 3943, var. Menziesii; F.S. 3:220, Zeichleri 

 (hvbrid); F.S. 3:208; F.S. 4:311, Fyflana (hybrid); 

 F S 0-010; F.S. 10:1002; F.S. 14:1434-0; F.S. 10:1099 

 and' 1705; F.S. 17:1708, 1772-1770; F.S. 18:1846 1878. 

 1885,1918-19; F.S. 19:1955, double forms; F.S. 21:2104; 

 PS '"•2324. I. H. 42:39, 41. Gt. 47:79; Gt. 48, p. 80. 

 Gn.'l5:'l08; 43:909; 52, p. 208. R.H. 1840:301, Teuch- 

 lerii; R.H. 1848:201, Fyflana; 1877:70, variabilis; R.H. 

 1883, p. 248. For florists' plants, see A.F. 11:/; A.G. 

 14-49; Gng. 0:83. There are many Latin-made names 

 of garden Gloxinias, but the plants are only forms of 

 the G. speciosa type. One of the commonest current 

 trade names is G. crassifolia, a name applied to some of 

 the best and largest-growing strains. 



There are double forms of Gloxinia, in which an outer 

 but shorter corolla is formed. These forms are more curi- 

 ous than useful. Gloxinia (Sinningia) has been hybri- 

 dized with Gesneria; and the hybrid progeny has been 

 called Gloxinera (G.C. III. 17:145, Fig. 22). L. H. B. 



Gloxinias are general favorites with most people. 

 Their large tubular and richly colored blossoms, to- 

 gether with their soft, velvety green leaves, make a 

 gorgeous display when in flower. Being natives of tropi- 

 cal America, they require stove temperature during their 

 growing season. Though they may be grown so as to 

 flower at almost any season of the year, yet they are 

 naturally summer-flowering plants, and do best when 

 treated as such. They are propagated by seeds, or by 

 cuttings made of leaves or stems. Seeds are preferable, 

 unless one wishes to increase some very choice colored 

 variety, when it is best to propagate by leaf cuttings, 



