Aeschynanthus

Aeschynanthus
Aeschynanthus speciosus
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Plantae
(unranked): Angiosperms
(unranked): Eudicots
(unranked): Asterids
Order: Lamiales
Family: Gesneriaceae
Genus: Aeschynanthus
Jack
Species

See text.

Aeschynanthus is a genus of about 150 species of evergreen subtropical plants in the family Gesneriaceae. They are usually trailing epiphytes with brightly colored flowers that are pollinated by sunbirds. The genus name comes from a contraction of aischuno (to be ashamed) and anthos (flower). The common name for some species is "lipstick plant", which comes from the appearance of the developing buds. A full list of the accepted species and their synonyms can be found in the Smithsonian Institution's World Checklist of Gesneriaceae.

The genus contains a large variety of plants with differing features. Some have thick, waxy cuticles (as in A. lobbianus) others have much softer leaves (as in A. hildebrandii). Species such as A. speciosus are large where A. micranthus is much smaller and trailing. Several species are valued in temperate climates as houseplants, notably A. longicaulis, A. pulcher and A. radicans.[1]

Species

Species include:[2]

Cultivation

They require good lighting and semi-moist, well-drained soil conditions to grow, though they vary and some require more moist soil (such as A. hildebrandii). They also prefer warm and humid conditions. Aeschynanthus lobbianus needs high light intensity to induce flowering.

References

  1. ↑ RHS A-Z encyclopedia of garden plants. United Kingdom: Dorling Kindersley. 2008. p. 1136. ISBN 1405332964.
  2. ↑ The Plant List: A Working List of All Plant Species, retrieved October 1, 2015

External links

This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the Friday, October 02, 2015. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.