Sinningia sp. "Desafinado"

1. Flowerstalk
2. Leaf arrangement
3. Feature table
4. External link

Seed obtained from the AGGS (now Gesneriad Society) Seed Fund under the name S. sp. "Waechter" yielded two different kinds of plant.  The first, described in this site as Sinningia arenicola, matched what Alain Chautems had applied the holding name sp. "Waechter" to.  I set seed on a couple of these plants, and they came true from seed (the resulting plants were had the same properties as the parents).

The other had flowers which bore similar "douglasii-type" streaks, but otherwise was quite different.  The seedlings of this second type were, however, quite similar to one another, suggesting that if the seeds were of hybrid origin, they were likely to be an F1, that is, a cross between two species, which would account for the relative lack of variation within this second type.

I set seed on the second type, and have seedlings coming along, but they have not bloomed yet, so I do not know whether the second type comes true from seed.

Because of the differences, I gave the second group of plants the name "Desafinado", from the Portuguese word meaning "out of tune".  It is also the title of the first bossa nova hit from back in the 60s, and a much finer tune than the ubiquitous "Girl from Ipanema".

Among the possibilities for the identity of Sinningia "Desafinado" are

• a new species
• a natural hybrid
• a hybrid resulting from hummingbird activity in Mauro's greenhouse.

Flowerstalk

This picture shows the terminal peduncle of Sinningia "Desafinado", which is quite different from the extended axis of S. arenicola.

For a table showing some of the differences between "Desafinado" and the "real" arenicola, see the table on the comparison page, which also has some pictures illustrating these differences.

Our local hummingbird, Calypte anna, often visits S. "Desafinado" when it blooms here in May.  In my yard, S. "Desafinado" finishes blooming just about the time that the first S. arenicola flowers open.

Leaf Arrangement

Here is a picture of the whole plant, with semi-glossy green leaves in pairs.  Sinningia arenicola has tough hairy leaves in whorls of three.

Also see a picture of the tuber.

Feature table for Sinningia "Desafinado"

External Link

Note that the handsome plant shown under the name S. sp. "Waechter" and accession number USBRG 98-093 on Ron Myhr's Gesneriad Reference Web is one of the "Desafinado" types, flowering from a terminal peduncle rather than the extended axis of the "true" waechter/arenicola.