Comparison Of "Unifoliate" Species

There are four sinningia species with what might be called a unifoliate habit. With all four of these species, the plant may have just a single leaf, seemingly growing directly from the tuber.

Two of these species, Sinningia helioana and Sinningia stapelioides, are closely related, and the plants in their leafy phase (but not in flowering) look quite similar.

Another species, Sinningia defoliata, is in the same "clade" (group of related species) as the previous two, but is not especially close within that clade.

Finally, the fourth species, Sinningia tuberosa, not only belongs to a different clade (see table below), but has a different sort of tuber and growth pattern.

All of these species are intriguing and highly recommended to the grower who has patience and space for them.

Feature	S. defoliata	S. helioana	S. stapelioides	S. tuberosa
Leaf count	One per stem	One or two per stem	One or two per stem	One per stem
Leafback	Green	Veins are green, but large areas between veins can be tinged with red	Green, but see below	Green
Leaf veining on back	Green	Green, even when leafback is reddened.	Miidvein, primary side veins are green. Secondary network veins can be red.	Green
Stem	Herbacious, green. Old stems sometimes remain as dried stubs.	Stiff, red at base	Stiff, red at base	Herbacious, green or reddish
Stem count	One (usually) ro a few	Usually one	Usually one	One to many
Flower	Red, tubular.	Red, tubular	Large, bell-shaped, white with purple veins	Red, tubular
Tuber	Normal flattened sphere, but with stubs from previous years' growth.	Normal flattened sphere. New shoots start as red buds.	Normal flattened sphere. New shoots start as red buds.	Chaotic mess. Arms, legs, and tentacles in profusion.
Inflorescence	Raceme from tuber	Cyme from tuber	Cyme from tuber	Raceme from tuber
Clade	Corytholoma	Corytholoma	Corytholoma	Sinningia