STREPTOCARPUS 



rib of which arise successive several-flowered scapes. 

 The introduction of this curious plant seems to have re- 

 vived the interest in Streptocarpuses, an interest that 

 has been kept alive by the frequent introduction of other 

 species. The chief stimulus to the systematic breeding 



STREPTOCARPUS 



1745 



2433. Streptocarpus Wendlandii (X %). 



of these plants seems to have been the introduction of 

 /S. Dunnii, said by J. D. Hooker to be "quite the mon- 

 arch of its beautiful genus" (but now excelled by <S. 

 Wendlandii). Seeds of this species were sent to Kew 

 in 1884 by E. G. Dunn, of Cape Town. It is one of the 

 moncphyllous section to which S. polyantha belongs. 

 In the meantime. S. parviflora, a species allied to <S. 

 Mexii, had been introduced from the Cape region. With 

 the three species, 5. Rexii, S. parviflora and S. Dunnii, 

 W. Watson, of the Royal Gardens, Kew, set to work 

 systematically to breed a new race of Streptocarpus, 

 and his efforts met with unqualified success. When the 

 hybrids came to notice in 1887, the Gardener's Chroni- 

 cle made the following comment on the value of the 

 work: "The results are very striking, and we can hardly 

 doubt that Mr. Watson has set the foundation of a new 

 race of plants, parallel in importance to the Achimenes 

 and Tydfeas." Several hybrid races have now been pro- 

 duced and several interesting species have been intro- 

 duced from the wild, so that Streptocarpus seems to be 

 destined to become a very important and popular garden 

 genus. 



Bentham and Hooker's treatment divides the Gesnera- 

 cese into two great tribes: Gesnerea?, with ovary more 

 or less inferior and fruit a capsule; Cyrtandrese, with 

 ovary superior and fruit sometimes a berry. The latter 

 tribe, the species of which have been monographed by 

 C. B. Clarke in vol. 5 of DeCandolle's "Monographiae 

 Phanerogamarum," contains the genera Streptocar- 

 pus, Episcea, Cyrtandra, J?schynanthus, Ramonda, and 

 others. The Streptocarpuses are stemless or nearly 

 stemless herbs, bearing 1 or more tubular nodding fls. 

 on short scapes that arise either from the crown of the 

 plant or from the midrib of a flat prostrate leaf: co- 

 rolla-tube cylindric, the limb 5-lobed and somewhat 2- 

 lipped; perfect stamens 2, included; pistils with ovary 

 linear, usually hairy, with style as long as or shorter 

 than the ovary, and stigma capitate or indistinctly 2- 

 lobed : fr. a linear 2-valved capsule, the valves twisting. 

 The flowers are usually showy, blue or lilac, rarely yel- 

 low. The species are of three groups: the stemless 

 monophyllous species, with one prostrate leaf from the 

 midrib of which the scapes arise (this leaf is really an 

 enlarged cotyledon, the other cotyledon not enlarging); 

 the stemless species, with several or many radical more 

 or less primula-like leaves (whence the English name 

 "Cape Primrose"); the stem-bearing species, with op- 

 posite cauline leaves. The cultivated species chiefly 

 represent the first two sections. In the American trade, 

 only four specific names occur, S. Eeiii, S. Galpini, S. 



Dunnii, and ,S". Wendlandii; but since the hybrids repre- 

 sent several other species, these additional species are 

 inserted in the following account. Streptocarpus is an 

 African genus. The stem-bearing section is confined to 

 central Africa and Madagascar, and the others to South 

 Africa. Clarke's Monograph, 1883, describes 19 species, 

 but S. Dunnii. S. Wendlandii, S. Galpini and others 

 have since been discovered. There are 25-30 known 

 species. 



Streptocarpuses are not difficult plants to grow. They 

 are usually raised from seeds, the seedlings blooming in 

 8 to 15 months from starting. The seeds are very small, 

 and care must be taken not to cover them too deep. 

 Give an open sunny place in an intermediate tempera- 

 ture. They are not stove or warmhouse plants. Of the 

 new hybrid forms, seeds sown in February or March 

 should produce plants that will bloom the following fall 

 and winter; after blooming, the plants may be discarded, 

 for better results are usually secured from new plants 

 than from those more than one season old. The sea- 

 son of most profuse bloom is summer, but the bloom 

 continues until winter. The monophyllous species can 

 be propagated also by cuttings of the leaf. Some fan- 

 ciers of Cape "Primroses advise propagating select 

 types by leaf cuttings or by division. 



A. Streptocarpus species, or those forms introduced 



from the wild. 



B. Leaf one, prostrate on the ground, usually very 



large. 

 c. Fls. red. 

 Dunnii, Hook. f. Soft-hairy: leaf becoming 3 ft. or 

 even more in length and 16 in. wide, thick-nerved, red- 

 dish tomentose beneath, rounded at base, obtuse at 

 apex, coarsely toothed : scapes several to many, in a 

 row beginning at the base of the leaf, erect, 1-3 ft. tall, 

 many-fld.: corolla long-tubular, curved, l\i in. long, the 

 limb narrow, bright rose-red. Transvaal. B.M. 6903. 

 G.F. 3:609.— A very floriferous species, one plant some- 

 times bearing more than 100 flowers. 



CO. Fls. blue, mauve or lilac. 



Saundersii, Hook. Hairy: leaf 1 ft. by 9 in., cordate, 

 obtuse, coarsely serrate, yellowish green above and pur- 

 ple-rose beneath: scapes 10-16 in. tall, bearing a com- 



Streptocarpus Rexii (X ; 



pound cyme of large drooping blossoms: corolla 1-1H 

 in. long, funnelform, the limb broad but not equaling 

 the nearly straight tube, light blue, with 2 purple spots 

 in the throat. Natal. B.M. 5251. F.S. 17:1802.-Named 

 for W. Wilson Saunders, through whom it was intro- 

 duced. 



