Chirita, Briggsia and other genera in the Gesneriaceae
The Gesneriaceae (African Violet family) is a large and diverse group of plants in which I have recently taken an interest. Specifically, I have been studying and collecting the various relatively hardy genera to be found growing in the temperate and subtropical regions of the Sino-Himalaya, often in the company of rhododendrons. There are literally dozens of genera and hundreds of species in this family of ornamental plants. Many of these form low basal rosettes of evergreen foliage topped with large blue or purple flowers and can be found on shaded, mossy cliffs and rock faces (Briggsia, Chirita, Oreocharis and Corallodiscus for example), while others are epiphytic in rainforest trees and have long pendulous branches with tubular orange or red flowers (Aeschynanthus). Of the various species that I have managed to introduce, one of the finest is shown here – Briggsia mihieri, a species observed in a deep limestone canyon at the base of the Jinfo Shan in southern Chongqing Province, China.
Representatives of this genus and the other genera listed here can be seen in the Rutherford Conservatory of the RSBG.