BEGONIA DRE'GII. 
DREGE’S BEGONIA. 
NATURAL ORDER, BEGONIACE^. 
MONOCHLiMYDEa!, 
OF 
DECANDOLEE. 
I 
Artificial divisions 
to which 
this Plant belongs. 
MONCECIA, 
POLYANDRIA, 
OF LINNEUS. 
No.217. 
GENUS. Begonia. Tournefort, Flores monoeci vel dioeci. Perian- 
THiuM petaloideum, segmentaplerumque ineequalia. FLORES MASCULI. 
Segmenta Perianthii 2-4, rarius 6-9, subrotunda, minora saepe spatbulata. 
Stamina indefinita; filamenta plus minusve coalita, receptaculo inserta; an- 
therae innatae, connectivum clavatum, compressiusculum. Pistillum nullum. 
FLORES F^MINEI. Segmenta Perianthii 4-6. Stamina nulla. Styli 
tres, sursum dilatati, undulati. Stigmata per margines terminales porrecta. 
Germen inferum, 3-quetrum, alatum, 3-loculare polyspermum. HERB^ vel 
SUFFRUTICES regionum orbis calidarum, caule carnoso, translucente, 
articulato. Folia alterna, bistipulata. Pedunculi axillares, dichotomi. 
Flores rosei vel albi. 
SPECIES. Begonia dregii {Link, Klotzsch, and Otto) caulescens, 
ramosa, glabra; radice tuberosa; foliis transverse rhomboideis, duplicato cre- 
natis, supra argenteo-maculatis, subtus rubris; pedunculis bifloris, flore mas- 
culo perianthii segmentis duobus, ffemineo segmentis sex capsulse alis dua- 
bus majoribus obtusangulis, una rotundata. 
Character of the Genus, Begonia. Flowers moniscious or 
dioecious. Perianth petaloid, segments generally unequal. Male 
Flowers. Segments of the Perianth 2-4, rarely 6-9, nearly round, 
the smaller ones often spathulate. Stamina indefinite; filaments 
more or less united, inserted into the receptacle; anthers erect, con¬ 
nective clavate, somewhat flattened. Pistil wanting. Female 
Flowers. Segments of the Perianth 4-6. Stamina want¬ 
ing. Styles 3, dilated upwards, undulate. Stigmata stretched 
along the terminal margin of the styles. Germen inferior, 3-sided, 
winged, 3-celled. Ovules numerous. 
Description of the Species, Begonia dregii. Whole Plant 
glabrous. Root tuberous, tuber flattened. Stem (in the specimen 
described, six inches high) erect, succulent, glabrous, pale red, faintly 
streaked with greenish white oblong spots, many rising from the crown 
of the root, branched. Leaves (1| inch long, 2 inches across) petioled, 
oblique, transversely elliptico-rhomboid, subpeltate, 5-9-nerved, glab¬ 
rous on both sides, green, with unequal silvery spots above, red below, 
darker on the nerves and their branches, doubly crenate; petioles 
spreading horizontally, twice as long as the leaves, having a shallow 
channel on the upper side. Stipules large, obliquely-ovate, colour¬ 
less, reflected in the sides, marcescent. Peduncles axillary, about 
53 . 
