6 
PELARGONIUM melanostictum, 
DaiL-spotted StorJc’s-bill . 
P. melanostictum, foliis cordatis subquinquelobis planis 
insequaliter acute dentatis utrinque hirsutis, stipulis cor¬ 
datis subdentatis, umbellis congestis 5-6-floris, pedicellis 
brevissimis, petaiis inferioribus oblongo-obovatis, tubo 
nectarifero calyce reflexo duplo breviore. 
A stout growing upright bushy plant, with a frutescent 
stem : branches thickly clothed with unequal spreading 
villous hairs, as is every other part of the plant except the 
corolla. Leaves cordate, rounded at the point, slightly 
5-lobed, unequally toothed with shortish sharp teeth, very 
soft to the touch, being thickly clothed with soft hairs on 
both sides, strongly and numerously nerved underneath, the 
nerves much branched: lower leaves overlapping at the 
base : upper ones more inclining to wedge-shaped, deeper 
and more sharply toothed. Petioles flattened, and chan¬ 
nelled a little on the upper side, convex on the lower, a 
little widened close to the leaf. Stipules broad, broadly 
cordate, ending in an acute point, generally toothed, and 
fringed. Umbels 5 or 6-flowered. Peduncles a little flat¬ 
tened, and furrowed a little, just below the umbel. Involu¬ 
cre of about 6 broad, ovate, blunt, fringed bractes, some 
of which are toothed, and terminate in a sort of mucro. 
Pedicles very short, much shorter than the bractes. Calyx 
5-cleft, tinged with a brownish purple ; segments lanceo¬ 
late, acute; the upper largest and erect; the others more 
or less reflexed. Nectariferous tube short, about half the 
length of the calyx. Petals 5, the two upper ones broadly 
obovate, unequal-sided, of a reddish lilac, marked with a 
large dark velvetty spot, below which are several short dark 
