2020 



MEDICAGO 



MEDINILLA 



peduncled clusters: pod spiral, 2-3-seeded. S. Eu. L.B. 

 C. 14:1379. Offered as an ornamental plant in S. 

 Calif. L. H. B. 



MEDINILLA (after Jose de Medinilla y Pineda, 

 governor of the Ladrones). Melastomacese. Choice 

 warmhouse plants with showy flowers and often with 

 showy bracts and foliage. 



Medinilla is distinguished from allied genera (none 

 of which has garden value) chiefly by the curious 

 appendages of the stamens. The stamens are 8, 10 or 

 12 (twice as many as the petals), the anterior connective 

 2-lobed or 2-spurred, the posterior one usually setose or 

 1-2-lobed or 1-spurred: branching shrubs, erect or 

 climbing: Ivs. mostly opposite or whorled, entire, often 

 fleshy: fls. white or rose, with or without bracts, in 

 panicles or cymes: fr. a berry crowned by the calyx- 

 limb. Species 125 and morCj in tropical parts of E. 

 Asia, Afr., and the Pacific region, many of them in the 

 Philippines. Those prominently described below have 

 opposite Ivs. and mostly 5-merous fls. 



Medinillas are amongst the handsomest and most 

 striking of flowering plants, and being of free growth 

 should be given a place in all tropical collections. To 

 succeed with them, a position affording all the light 

 possible should be given them. However, they will not 

 stand strong sunshine, and it is advisable that they 

 be shaded with cheese-cloth the greater part of the year. 

 If they are grown under a heavy shade, they are not 

 inclined to flower well. Cuttings of half-ripened wood, 

 taken in spring, is the best means of propagation. These 

 may be potted singly, in suitable pots, in a mixture of 

 finely sifted peat and sand, with a little powdered 

 charcoal added. Place them hi a tight case, and keep 

 fairly moist, care being taken that the air does not 

 become stagnant. The night temperature should not 

 be less than 70. The cuttings will be rooted in about 

 a month, when they may gradually be given more air 

 and finally transferred to a position in the tropical 

 house. In the earlier stages of growth, the points of the 

 shoots may be stopped by pinching to encourage 

 breaks. Later on they will branch freely of themselves. 

 A good fibrous loam with a third of sharp sand, adding 

 a little charcoal about the size of beans, is the best 

 potting material. Pot moderately firm, as this tends to 



2344. Medinilla magnifica. A young specimen. 



make a shorter-jointed growth and firmer wood, which 

 is indispensable for success in flowering. Three inches 

 of a shift may be given each time they are potted, as 

 they root freely, but strict attention must be given to 

 drainage, as they require plenty of water during their 

 growing season. A night temperature of not less than 

 68 is necessary while they are in active growth. 

 Syringe freely on all bright days, especially the under 

 side of the foliage, as red-spider is likely to get a foot- 

 hold. As autumn approaches, gradually lower the 

 temperature to 60 by night, and gradually withhold 

 water, giving just enough to keep the leaves plump. 

 This ripens the wood for flowering. While the flowers 

 are forming, as dry an atmosphere as possible should be 

 maintained. After flowering, the plants may be pruned 

 into shape, and any repotting done that is necessary. 

 Medinillas may be retained in the same-sized pot for 

 years, after they have attained the desired size, by 

 shaking out a portion of the old soil each year, when 

 repotting, and feeding liberally during the growing 

 period with manure water. M. magnifica is the hand- 

 somest form, but M . Teysmannii (M. amabilis) is also a 

 fine variety, the panicles being erect instead of pendu- 

 lous, which is the habit of the former. M. Curtisii is 

 quite distinct from the above. It grows well in a green- 

 house temperature of 50 to 55 and begins to flower in 

 the fall, lasting through the winter. The leaves are 

 much smaller than in the above two species. It makes 

 an excellent bush plant and should be better known. 

 Mealy-bug and scale are liable to attack the plants and 

 they must be kept in check as soon as detected. (George 

 F. Stewart.) 



A. Fls. coral-red or rosy pink. 



magnifica, Lindl. Figs. 2344, 2345. Evergreen shrub: 

 Ivs. with 9-13 nerves, which run from various points 

 along the midrib to the margin or apex, ovate or ovate- 

 oblong: bracts 1^4 in. long. Philippines. B.M. 4533. 

 F.S. 6:572; 9:968 (splendid). Gn. 51, p. 394. G.C. II. 

 2: 421; III. 49:226. R.B. 33, p. 72; 36, p. 54. G. 31:357. 

 J.F. 1:56, 57; 3:298. G.W. 1, p. 6; 10, p. 431. R.H. 

 1857, pp. 319, 343; 1896, pp. 102, 103. A.F. 7:1047. 

 Other interesting features are the whorled branches, 

 each one 4-ridged or winged, and the dense ring of 

 short fleshy processes at the joints between the Ivs. It 

 can be prop, by seeds or cuttings of young wood in heat. 

 M. magnifica is one of the most gorgeous tropical plants 

 in cult. It has handsome broad, shining, leathery 

 foliage and coral-red 5-petaled fls., each about 1 in. 

 across, which are borne in pendulous pyramidal pani- 

 cles sometimes a foot long, and bearing 100-150 fls. The 

 axis and branches of the panicle are pinkish, and the 

 same color tinges the large showy bracts, which are 

 sometimes 4 in. long. Hooker says: "Its most beautiful 

 state is, perhaps, before the full perfection of the fls., 

 when the large imbricated bracts begin to separate and 

 allow the buds to be partially seen. As the expansion 

 of the blossoms advances, the upper bracts fall off, but 

 the lower ones remain and become reflexed." This 

 remarkable plant flowers copiously when only 2 or 3 ft. 

 high, and a large well-kept specimen in bloom is a 

 worthy ambition of a gardener. The numerous long 

 bent purple anthers, with their yellow filaments, form 

 an additional feature of interest. 



Teysmannii, Miq. (M. amabilis, Dyer). Exceeds 

 M. magnifica in size of fls., but lacks the beautiful 

 colored bracts: glabrous: sts. with 4 crisped or crenulate 

 wings: Ivs. very large (12 in. long and 6-8 in. wide), 

 sessile, obovate-oblong or elliptic-oblong, acute and 

 often concave, wavy-margined, 5-nerved: panicle 

 pyramidal, erect, bracts none; fls. rose-colored, lJ^-2 

 in. diam. ; calyx truncate or obscurely lobed ; stamens 10, 

 upcurved, with pale violet anthers. Celebes, New 

 Guinea. B.M. 6681. G.C. II. 1:373; 17:561. 



javanensis, Blume. Erect shrub or tree with smooth 

 4-sided branches: Ivs. large, sessile, elliptic-ovate, 



