GONOLOBUS HISPIDUS. HISPID GONOLOBUS. 
Class V. PENTANDRIA.— Order II. DIGYNIA. 
Natural Order, ASCLEPIDACEiE. 
Character of the Genus Gqnolobus. Calyx five-parted. Corolla somewhat wheel-shaped, five-parted. 
Corona stamineous, scutelliform-lobed. Anthers terminating with a membranaceous appendage, dehiscing 
transversely. Pollinia transverse, fixed to the exterior extremity. Stigma flattish. Follicles patent, ven- 
tricose, somewhat rihbed. Seeds many, comose to the umbilicus. 
Description of the species, Gonolobus Hispidus. Stem suffruticose, round, somewhat 
twining, clothed with long, soft, yellowish hispid hairs. Leaves opposite, petiolate, membranaceous, of a 
pale green colour, ovate, cordate, or orbicular, the upper ones acute, undulate, and ciliate, each side smooth, 
with the exception of the veins on the under side, which are prominent. Petioles from a quarter to half an 
inch long, covered with hairs, similar to those on the stem. Peduncles axillary, hairy, scarcely as long as 
the petioles. Flowers from four to ten, umbellate. Pedicels hairy, about half as long as the peduncles. 
Bracts subulate, about the length of the pedicels. Calyx smooth, about one third th'e length of the corolla. 
Corolla from half to three quarters of an inch in diameter, rotate, concave, of a thick coriaceous leathery 
texture, and of a dark shining brownish purple colour, divided into five equal ovate acute parts, in the 
exterior of which, at the base, are small raised points. Nectaries of five erect dark, purple, fleshy, bifid 
scales from the base of the corolla; within these appendages are arranged the five stamens, which are united 
into a very thick stipes. Anthers five, extrose, two celled, between which are found two small diverging 
lobes. Pollen masses two, compact, waxy, yellow. Ovarium inferior, ovules numerous. 
The species which compose this genus are not of a showy character, indeed many of them are no 
better than rambling weeds, and not worth cultivating ; such are for example, Gonolobus maritimus, and 
Gonolobus diadematus. Perhaps for beauty there has not been introduced a more attractive species than 
the one now figured, as each umbel contains from eight to ten blossoms, having a diameter of from two to 
three inches, which are arranged in the axils of the leaves, alternate on each side of the stem, at a distance 
of about three inches ; and so freely are its flowers produced that they commence at about eighteen inches 
from the ground, and continue to the height of several feet. The flowers, however, are not of an attractive 
brilliance, being of a dark brown purple colour ; but it has a powerful and concentrated fragrance, of so 
singular a description that it has been compared, by Sir W. J. Hooker, to the flavour of roasted peas. The 
number of described species at present introduced amounts to about thirty, all natives of South, and the 
warmer parts of North, America : the locality of our present species is Entre Rios, South Brazil. 
If, however, the species of this genus are not showy, they are, together with the whole of the natural 
order Asclepiadaceee, very singular in structure, so much so that they differ from all other dicotyledones or 
exogens, and are more related in their sexual structure to the Orchidacese, as may be witnessed in the com- 
pact waxy texture of the pollen masses, and which are found so uniformly in the Asclepiadaceee proper. 
On the relation of Asclepiadaceee to Orchidaceee some interesting observations have been published, by 
Dr. then Mr. Brown, to which the reader is referred. 
Introduction; Where grown; Culture. Our plant was introduced into this country in the 
year 1837- It was sent, in that year, by Mr. Tweedie, to the Glasnevin Garden, in which establishment it 
flowered in 1839. 
It is treated as a stove plant, but, probably, it will stand our winters in a sheltered situation, against a 
warm wall, on the southern coast; where, if trained, it will flower in much greater perfection than re- 
maining in a pot ; and its lurid flowers will form a striking contrast to many other climbers. It may be 
propagated by cuttings, placed under a hand-glass in a stove; and when potted out should be planted in 
loam, sand, and peat.* 
A writer under the signature Crito in the “Truth Teller ” dilates most pleasantly in his fourth letter 
concerning flowers and their names. He says “the pilgrimages and the travelling of the mendicant friars, 
which began to be common towards the close of the twelfth century, spread this knowledge of plants and of 
medical nostrums far and wide. Though many of these vegetable specifics have been of late years erased 
from our Pharmacopoeias, yet their utility has been asserted by some very able writers on physic, and the 
author of these observations has himself often witnessed their efficacy in cases where regular practice had 
been unavailing. Mr. Abernethy has alluded to the surprising efficacy of these popular vegetable diet drinks, in 
his book on the 4 Digestic Organs.’ And it is a fact, curiously corroborating their utility, that similar me- 
dicines are used by the North American Indians, whose sagacity has found out, and known from time im- 
memorial, the use of such various herbs as medicines, which the kind, hospitable woods provide, and by 
* We are indebted to that charming work, the “Botanist,” for the figure and description. 
