#melastomataceae

[faguscarolinensis]

Rhexia virginica / Virginia Meadowbeauty in Durham, NC

[wenbochenphoto]

Didn't know there are ant-house plants in Melastomataceae. This Venezuelan shrub, Miconia tococa, is famous for myrmecophytism - it has a pouch (domatia) at the base of each leaf that provides shelter for ants, and in return, the ants defend the plant and reward it with nutrients (ants' organic waste).

[heartnosekid]

iridescent sarcopyramis plant | source

[captious-solarian]

Silverleafed princess flower in Pretoria, South Africa. Photo by tjeerd, 2018.

[helluvatimes]

The Crimson Medinilla

The Crimson Medinilla (Medinilla miniata) blooming in a shady part of the Cloud Forest. Photo credit: Eleanor Chua.

[zegalba]

Venezuela in South America is home to some 21,000 plant species, including this flowering plant (Melastomataceae) found in the Sierra Nevada National Park. Rainforests are thought to harbor at least 40 percent of the world's 300,000 plant species, including two-thirds of all known flowering plants.

[katacala]

12.19.24 • 🫐🌸

[drhoz]

#1955 - Pleroma urvilleanum - Glory Bush

AKA Tibouchina urvilleana, lasiandra, princess flower and pleroma. The specific refers to 19th-century French explorer and botanist Jules Dumont d'Urville who explored the south and western Pacific, Australia, New Zealand, and Antarctica. The plant, on the other hand, is from Brazil.

Yet another ornamental left to its own devices at Lake Mangamahoe. Naturalised in NZ since 1977, and a weed in Queensland, Australia.