Sinningia is a genus of flowering plants in the family Gesneriaceae. It is named after Wilhelm Sinning (1792-1874), a gardener of the Botanische Gärten der Friedrich-Wilhelms-Universität Bonn. There are about 65 species of tuberous herbaceous perennials, all occurring in Central and South America, with the greatest concentration of species occurring in southern Brazil.
Sinningia species often grow on rocks or cliffs and most are pollinated by hummingbirds or bees but Sinningia brasiliensis is bat-pollinated, and Sinningia tubiflora, with large, powerfully fragrant tubular white flowers, is apparently pollinated by sphinx moths. Most of the species have large, brightly coloured flowers. Because of this, numerous species and numerous hybrids and cultivars are grown as houseplants. A cultivar worth knowing is Sinningia x 'Lovely.' This beautifully gentle plant is a cross between Sinningia sellovii and Sinningia tubiflora. Its tall spikes and tubular flowers attract butterflies, and delight gardeners.
Some species with particularly large tubers are cultivated by cactus and succulent enthusiasts as caudiciforms. One such example is Sinningia leucotricha, often listed under the older name Rechsteineria leucotricha and dubbed "Brazilian edelweiss" for its covering of silvery, silky hairs. Other species with large tubers are Sinningia iarae, Sinningia lineata, and Sinningia macropoda.
Sinningias are attractive greenhouse plants and houseplants that appeal strongly to gardeners who like to specialise in particular plant groups.The chief environmental needs are warmth, high humidity, suitable soil and good light with shade from strong sun. The soil should be well drained. It should contain a liberal proportion of organic matter, such as leaf mould or peat moss, and enough coarse sand or perlite to ensure good porosity.
This post is part of the Floral Friday Fotos meme.
A popular house plant, Streptocarpus is a genus of flowering plants in the family Gesneriaceae (Gesneriads). The flowers are five-petalled, salverform tubes, almost orchid-like in appearance, and hover or arch over the plant. The genus is native to parts of Africa and Madagascar. In the wild, species can be found growing on shaded rocky hillsides or cliffs, on the ground, in rock crevices, and almost anywhere the seed can germinate and grow.
For the home, there are now many hybrids of various colours and forms available.The genus is defined by having a spirally twisted fruit (from Greek via Latin, where strepto = twisted, carpus = fruit - Greek: Στρεπτόκαρπος), although this character is also found in some other Old World genera of Gesneriaceae. Although generally referred to simply as Streptocarpus, or "Streps", one common name is Cape Primrose, referring to the nativity of several species to South Africa and their superficial resemblance to the genus Primula.
I love reading the signs on plants in nurseries as they are a wealth fo information and often have bits and pieces on them that I didn't know. For example, I always referred to this plant as "Streps" and hadn't heard of the term "nodding violet" - a much more poetic one!
This post is part of the Signs, Signs Thursday meme,
