Cryptostegia grandiflora
Bot. Reg. 5: plate 435. 1820.
Leaf blades 2.5–10 × 2.5–6.3 cm, glabrous. Petioles 3.9–15 mm, glabrous or slightly pubescent. Flowers: calyx lobes ovate, 13–20 mm, margins reflexed; corolla tube 18–30 mm, lobes 31.5–56 × 15–30 mm, glabrous or pubescent; corolline corona 8–11 mm, 2-fid; translator spathes orbiculate. Follicles (8–)10–15.5 × 2–4 cm. Seeds 5.2–9.7 mm; coma 18.9–38 mm. 2n = 22.
Phenology: Flowering and fruiting year-round, mostly in summer.
Habitat: Disturbed areas.
Elevation: 0–200 m.
Distribution
Introduced; Fla., Tex., Indian Ocean Islands (Madagascar), introduced also in Mexico, West Indies, Bermuda, Central America, South America, Asia, Africa, elsewhere in Indian Ocean Islands, Pacific Islands, Australia.
Discussion
In the United States, Cryptostegia grandiflora is currently known outside of cultivation only in the keys of Monroe County, Florida, and along the Rio Grande (Cameron and Starr counties, Texas; T. F. Patterson and G. L. Nesom 2009).
Selected References
None.