Sinningia sulcata

1. The Dixon plant
2. The Denham plant
3. Feature table
4. Publication and etymology

This species must be rare.  Mauro's web site doesn't have a picture.  Ron's web site doesn't have a picture.  And this was only one of three published sinningia species for which the Perret et al. authors could not find suitable plant material (the other two being S. helleri, which is probably extinct, and S. schomburgkiana, which I had never heard of at the time).

The Dixon Plant

Jon Dixon is the only one I know who has this plant.  This is a flower on his plant in May 2007.

The picture is over-exposed, so the yellow in the flower is washed out, but I'm not good enough to photoshop it back to reality.  You're going to have to use your imagination.

This species bears some resemblance to Sinningia sellovii.  The flowers hang vertically, and the stamens are exserted (extend beyond the tube).  The flowers are about as long, but S. sulcata's are wider.

The branching pattern is also very like that of S. sellovii.  First the main stalk blooms on the extended axis.  Then secondary shoots emerge from the main stem, in leaf axils about halfway up its length, and these too bloom as an extended axis.

From the pictures, it appears that there is another resemblance to S. sellovii. The flowers seem to be resupinate.  Note that the flowers appear to be flipped, with the pedicel attached to the flower from above.  The flower directly in front in the picture on the left appears to have the two "top" corolla lobes on the lower side of the corolla.

I can't give you a description of the leaves, because Jon's plant pretty much didn't have any.  You can see a couple of small leaves about halfway up the picture, and a couple of bract-like leaves at the top.  And that was about it.  Jon said it would leaf out after it was through blooming.  I'll try to get leaf pictures later.

The Denham Plant

These pictures were sent to me by Miriam Denham, showing a plant she and her late husband Dale received from Bolivia many years ago.  The picture below shows the same plant out of flower, with a very hairy stem and hairy leaves.

Feature table for Sinningia sulcata

Publication

As Gesnera sulcata by Rusby, in 1895.
As Sinningia sulcata by Wiehler, in 1978.

Etymology: Latin sulcatus [from sulcus, "furrow"].