77 
PELARGONIUM mollifolium. 
Soft-leaved Stork's-bill. 
P. mollifolium , caule villoso ramoso, foliis reniformibus 
acutiusculis acute dentatis utrinque mollissime pi¬ 
losis : inferioribus subquinquelobis undulatis: supe- 
rioribus cordatis trilobis planis, stipulis ovatis acutis, 
umbellis 3-4-floris, bracteis ovatis subdentatis cus- 
pidatis, calycibus villosis, tubo nectarifero calyce 
subsequali, stylo glaberrimo. 
Stem frutescent, erect, branching: branches thickly 
clothed with spreading unequal soft villous hairs, as are 
the petioles, stipules, peduncles, bractes, and calyx. 
Leaves variable, very soft to the touch, being thickly 
clothed on both sides with short soft hairs, the margins 
regularly and rather deeply toothed with numerous sharp 
rigid teeth: lower ones kidney-shaped, but rather acute, 
slightly 5-lobed, undulate, strongly 3-nerved under¬ 
neath, the nerves branched and clothed with long spread¬ 
ing hairs: upper leaves cordate, acute, three-lobed, flat, 
deeply and sharply toothed. Petioles nearly round, or 
slightly flattened on the upper side. Stipules ovate or 
inclining to cordate, acute, fringed. Peduncles 3 or 4- 
flowered, cylindrical. Involucre of 6 broadly ovate, frin¬ 
ged bractes, that terminate in a sharp point. Pedicles 
very long, three times the length of the bractes. Calyx 
5-cleft, the segments lanceolate, taper-pointed, spread¬ 
ing. Nectariferous tube about the length of the calyx, 
much flattened on each side and gibbous at the base. 
Petals 5, the two upper ones broadest, obovate, unequal¬ 
sided, of a pale blush, stained with red lead colour, and 
a large dark velvetty patch in the centre, edged with 
red, below which are many dark purple lines, somewhat 
vol. i. x 
