BEGONIA 



BEGONIA 



477 



41. Lmperialis, Lem. Very hairy, low: st. short, her- 

 baceous, green: Ivs. 4-6 in. wide, brownish green, with 

 irregular bands of bright green along the nerves, mak- 

 ing a striking contrast: fls. insignificant, white. Mex. 

 I.H. 8:274. Var. maculata, Hurt., has brown Ivs. with 

 green blotches. Var. smaragdina, Hort., has wholly 

 bright green Ivs. I.H. 7:262. These plants require a 

 hothouse treatment in winter. 



cc. Lv.t. markedly peltate. 



42. modica, Stapf. A spreading, dwarf plant with 

 .-ts. green, slender: Ivs. peltate, orbicular or broadly 

 ovate, 2-4 in. long, pale green in color, margins pink, 

 undulate, margins and veins ciliate; petioles greenish 

 red, hairy, 3-5 in. long: infl. few-fld., males small, 2- 

 petaled, orange-yellow, with red blotch at base of 

 petals, females same as males in color; ovary 4-celled, 

 ' 2 in. long, winged, hairy. W. Trop. Afr. B.M. 8258. 

 A recent specie.s, requiring stove conditions. 



43. Gentilii, De Wild. A near ally of B. modica: sts. 

 creeping, red hairy: Ivs. peltate, erect, ovate, acute, 

 margins finely serrate, slightly reflexed, green suffused 

 with light red, young Ivs. red; petiole terete, red, 

 hairy, 6-12 in. long; blades 3-4 in. long: infl. few-fld.; 

 fls. orange-yellow suffused with red; ovary 4-celled, 

 winged. Congo. 



44. Bindtii, Hort. Plant rough-hairy like B. Rex: 

 Ivs. elliptic-orbicular, markedly peltate, green above 

 and red-hairy beneath, blistered or bullate. Very 

 recently offered, and yet little known. 



45. goegoensis, X. E. Br. FIRE KING. Compact but 

 large plant: st. a short, thick, greenish red rootstock: 

 Ivs. handsome, erect, peltate, ovate-orbicular, 6-9 in. 

 long, surface blistered or puckered green, with dark 

 bronzy blotches, prominently veined, dull red on the 

 under side: fls. small, rose-pink, in a lax cluster 6 in. 

 high. Goego, Sumatra. A distinct and ornamental- 

 Ivil. plant, requiring stove conditions; deserves the 

 attention of amateurs. 



BB. The essentially pliiin-lvd. rhizomatous kinds, although 

 some of them are grotrn almost wholly for the foliage. 

 (Some of this group are bold and striking.) 



c. Lvs. prominently lobed, or parted or even divided. 



46. ricinifdlia, Hort. (B. heracleifolia x B. peponi- 

 folia). St. a short, thick rootstock: Ivs. large, bronzy 



. 



SIS. Begonia Rajah (XH). No. 36. 



green, lobed, resembling castor-oil plant: fls. numerous, 

 on long, erect peduncles, rose-pink. A useful free- 

 flowering plant for the greenhouse, producing its fls in 

 winter and early spring. Var. gigantea odorata, Hort., 

 is a double hybrid (H. ricinifdlia and B fulgens x 

 B. Scharffiana) of German origin. Lvs. large, round-cor- 



date, the lobes extending one-third or less deep and 

 notched: fls. on long scapes, standing above the Ivs., 

 delicate rose-color and with tea-rose odor. Gt. 54, 

 p. 42. 



47. heracleifdlia.Cham.&Schlecht. (B.jatrophsefblia, 

 Hort.). Hairy: st. a short, thick rhizome: Ivs. 6-12 in. 

 across, with 5-9 deep and narrow notched and toothed 



516. Begonia magniflca 

 No. 59. 



lobes, rich green: peduncles 2^-4 ft., long, straight: fls. 

 white or rose-tinted, small, with 2 prominent rounded 

 parts. Mex. B.M. 3444. B.R. 1668. J.H. III. 56:309. 

 Var. nigricans, Hook., has the margins of the Ivs. bor- 

 dered with dark (almost black) green. B.M. 4983. Var. 

 longipila, Hort. has long, fleshy hairs on the If.-stalks 

 and peduncles. B. Sunderbruch'ii, Hort., is an American 

 form of this var. : Ivs. bronze-green, silver bands along 

 the nerves, purple underneath. Var. punctata, Hort., 

 has green Ivs.. reddish near the margin: fls. rose-colored, 

 with deep red spots on the outside. 



48. rubella, Hamil. Smooth: st. a short, thick rhi- 

 zome: Ivs. handsome, large, cordate, acuminate, deeply 

 lobed, spotted with irregularly shaped dark brown marks : 

 fls. pale pink, on long peduncles, decorative. Nepal. 



49. Verschaffeltiana, Regel (B. Verschaffeltii, Hort. 

 B. manicdta x B. caroliniaefolia) . Hairy: st. a thick 

 rhizome: Ivs. large, ovate, acuminate, lobed: fls. rose- 

 colored, pendent on long peduncles. I.H. 2:68. Tall, 

 coarse and unsightly as an old specimen, but when well 

 grown from year to year from cuttings makes an excel- 

 lent plant and produces quantities of its small rose- 

 colored fls. in early spring, which last for several months 

 and have a considerable decorative value. 



50. heracleic6tyle, Veitch (B. heracleifolia x B. hydro- 

 cotylifolia) . A small, essentially smooth plant, with 

 Ivs. close to the rhizomes: Ivs. thick, obliquely cordate- 

 ovate, many-lobed and toothed, margins slightly ciliate, 

 shining metallic green above and reddish beneath: fls. 

 pink, small, freely produced on about 8 free-branching 

 peduncles in early spring. Veitch, 1895. A useful and 

 decorative greenhouse plant. 



cc. Lvs. lanc/'olute to ovate or cordate-ovate to orbicular, 



not deeply lobed, often entire, and sometimes peltate. 



D. Foliage small, the Ivs. less than 2 in. wide. 



51. hydrocotylifdlia, Otto. Whole plant hairy: st. 

 succulent, creeping: Ivs. rotundate-cordate, repand but 



