Pachystachys
Content
Description
Herbaceous or suffrutescent plants. Stems terete or upper parts subquadrangular, puberulous when young, soon becoming glabrous. Leaves petiolate; blades elliptic or broadly oblanceolate to oblong-obovate, apex acute to acuminate, the tip itself usually blunt, gradually to rather abruptly narrowed at base, margin entire or undulate, glabrous except puberulous, glabrescent primary and secondary veins. Inflorescences dense, terminal, solitary spikes; flowers in verticillasters of 3-4 flowers; bracts conspicuous, herbaceous; bracteoles small or none. Calyx 5-lobed, lobes relatively short; corolla spreading, slenderly obconic, curved, 2-lipped, upper lip narrow, 2-lobed at tip, lower lip 3-lobed, lobes subequal, oblong or ovate, bright red, becoming orange-red with age, pink or occasionally white; stamens 2, about as long as the corolla, attached near base of tube, anthers 2-thecous, deeply sagittate, base of thecae muticous, staminodes absent or rudimentary. Capsule with 4 reticulate seeds.
Distribution
Amazonian Brazil present, French Guiana present, Guianas present, Neotropics present, Northern America, Southern America: Bolivia (Bolivia present); Peru (Peru present)
From Mexico and the West Indies southward to Peru and Bolivia, eastward to French Guiana and Amazonian Brazil; in the Neotropics 13 species, of which 2 in the Guianas.