i m
PELARGONIUM patens.
Spreading -flowered Stork’s-bill.
P. patens, umbellis multifloris subsimplicibus, foliis
ternatis: foliolis sessilibus inciso-dentatis obtusis,
caule carnoso suffruticoso erector petalis ligulatis
patentibus, calycibus reflexis, tube nectarifero ca-
lyce duplo longiori.
Root tuberous, Very large and branched out into
other smaller tubers. Stem very short, succulent, erect,
and rigid, thickly clothed with short soft hairs. Leaves
growing in a radiate form, ternate: leaflets sessile,
blunt, unequally cut and toothed with very blunt
teeth; middle one much longer than the side ones,
more divided. Petioles long, flattened ort the upper
side and rounded on the lower, widened at the base,
thickly clothed with unequal spreading hairs, as are
the peduncles and nectariferous tube. Stipides lanceolate,
taper-pointed and joined to the base of the
petioles. Scape long, simple ? leafy at the joint. Peduncle
very long, cylindrical, in our specimen 15-flow-
ered. Involucre of numerous narrowly lanceolate,
acute, fringed bractes. Calyx 5-cleft, segments lanceolate,
upper one much the largest, concave, erect,
the others reflexed. Nectariferous tube flattened on
each side, gradually widened upwards, about twice the
length of the calyx. Petals 5, ligulate, the two uppermost
widest, slightly emarginate, of a bright scarlet,
shaded with a darker colour, and marked near the
base with a few short forked lines ; lower petals narrower,
of a lighter colour, white at the base. Filaments
10, united at the base, 7 bearing anthers, which in our
specimen were all destitute of pollen. Germen and
VOL. II. H