PETREA VOLUBILIS. 



(Twining Petrea.) 



LINNEAN SYSTEM. -j^g NATURAL ORDER. 



DIDYNAMIA ANGIOSPERMIA. VERBENACE/E. 



GENERIC CHARACTER. 



Petrea. (Linn.) Calyx campanulatus, coloratus; limbo duplici; exteriore quinquepaiiito, 

 longo, patente, aequali, scarioso ; interiore quinquedentato, brevissimo. Corolla calyce brevior ; 

 tubo brevi; limbo quinquefido, subaequali, patente. Stamina 4, inclusa. Stigma capitatum. 

 Capsula (ex Jacq.) bilocularis, calyce persistente inclusa ; loculis monospermis. Arbor es aut 

 frutices scandentes. Folia simplicia, opposita, integerrima. Spicce axillares et terminales. 

 Flores pedicellati, suboppositi, bracteati. (Kunth.) 



Calyx campanulate, coloured ; limb double ; the exterior 5-parted, long, spreading, equal 

 scarious ; the interior 5-toothed, very short. Corolla shorter than the calyx ; tube short ; 

 limb o-cleft, somewhat equal, spreading. Stamens 4, included. Stigma capitate. Capsule 

 (according to Jacquin) 2-celled, enclosed by the persistent calyx; cells 1-seeded. Trees or 

 climbing shrubs. Leaves simple, opposite, very entire. Spikes axillary and terminal. Flowers 

 pedicellate, somewhat opposite, with bracts. 



SPECIFIC CHARACTER. 



P. volubilis; foliis ovato-oblongis acutis scabris; spicis pendulis racernosis. 



Leaves ovate- oblong, acute, scabrous ; spikes pendulous, racemose. 



Petrea volubilis.— Linn. Hort. Cliff. 319.— Spec. Plant. 873.— Jacq. Americ. 180. 



Descr. — Shrub; Stem climbing, acquiring considerable thickness and attaining a height of 

 several feet. Leaves opposite with short footstalks, of a dark dull green, and scabrous to the 

 touch. Racemes long, pendulous, opposite, many-flowered. Calyx star-like, longer than the 

 corolla, of a greyish or lavender blue ; corolla of a rich and most intense blue, with a small 

 delicate white blotch at the base of the upper segment. Stamens didynamous, inclosed by the 

 tube of the corolla. 



This splendid climber, although introduced to this country as early as 1733, 

 and by no means unfrequent in collections, is not often seen in flower. It is a 

 native of Vera Cruz. Our drawing was made from a magnificent specimen in the 



collection of Harris, Esq., of Kingsbury, where it has flowered profusely 



under the management of Mr. D. Beaton, the zealous and intelligent gardener, 

 who has obligingly furnished us with some valuable remarks on its treatment. 



This delightful climber, observes Mr. Beaton, ought to be refigured in our 

 modern works, in order to bring such a floral treat more prominently before the 



