Botanical Magazine 106 - 1880.pdf - hibiscus.org

work plants, and though once long lost to cultivation, is not
likely to be so again, now that herbaceous plants are fast
becoming favourites with intelligent collectors. The speci-
men here figured was raised from Himalayan seeds, and
flowered in the open border in July and August.
DESCB. A soft densely tufted low herb, with faintly milky
juice. Stems decumbent, sending up numerous ascending
slender usually simple one-flowered leafy branches, that are
covered with brown spreading hairs or glabrate. Leaves
one-half to one inch long, alternate, narrowly cunéate or
cuneate-obovate, three- to five-lobed, the lobes entire or
crenately cut, narrowed into a broad petiole, glabrous or
sparingly hairy. Flowers solitary, terminal, erect in bud,
then horizontal, one to one and a quarter of an inch long.
Calyx broadly tubular and somewhat inflated, brown-black
and clothed densely with dark brown long soft hairs ; lobes
about one-fourth the length of the tube, triangular-lanceo-
late, acute, erect. Corolla-tube broad, longer than the calyx ;
limb one to one and a quarter of an inch in diameter, throat
open, bearded; lobes spreading and recurved, deep violet-
blue, paler towards the throat, obovate with a minute
bearded point. Stamens forming a membranous five-toothed
tube around the ovary, filaments at length free and slender;
anthers remaining united and bursting inwards. Ovary
wholly superior, ovoid, five-grooved and five-celled; style
rather short, glabrous, stigma with five short spreading
teeth.•/. D. H.
Fig. 1, young ovary and stamina! tube; 2, stamens; 3, transverse section of
ovary -.•all enlarged.