Hi there, this is a laboratory experiment on plant morphology and I've been looking for the scientific names of these plants/flowers, two of which I've already obtained but I'm still not sure so please correct me! :) The first, if i'm not mistaken, is a pink Vireya rhododendron. Initially i thought it was an oleander flower but I think it looks more like a rhododendron. Is that correct? The second is baffling. I've tried searching for plants + pink leaves + white underside, but to no avail. The third, I think it's a Bougainvillea glabra since it has a distinctive pointed bract. Any help is much appreciated. Thanks!
You're bang on for your Rhodo and your Bougainvillea. Compare your pink-leaved plant to Coleus (assuming that the hibiscus flowers in the background don't belong to it...)
Thanks for the two! :) I googled Coleus but no.. it's not the same..the pink colour of the leaves extends throughout the whole leaf..not just the middle portion.. hehe.
Can you give us some other views of the plant? That sometimes helps. Edit - maybe an extreme form of Hypoestes?
2. Looks like Mussaenda. Possibly Mussaenda erythrophylla. I think you have taken a branch from a much larger tree/ shrub. The pink is a bract not a leaf. The bract can be white,pink or red. There would have been a small yellow flower in the centre http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/F...n_plant_Mosantha_flower_from_Kerala_India.jpg http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Mussaenda1.jpg http://dollarstips.com/freebies/mussaenda-erythrophylla-the-colorful-garden-plant/
I'm not sure about the flower (my friend was handling this one) but the two do look very similar. Do you think we've found our match?
Very often the flowers drop off while the pink bracts still remain. If you are still not completely convinced, I think you/ or your friend should revisit the shrub that you took this from, to get a view of the complete plant ie. normal green leaves below the pink bracts.
I see. After looking at the white veins (they ARE the veins, right?), I'm about 95% sure it's the one. Just have to discuss with my friends later. Thanks a lot for your help, silver surfer. And lorax, too! Have a great day.
Hi Puddleton, Thanks for your input. What makes you say so? When I searched for images of the Queen Sirikit, they turned out to have paler coloured bracts than the one I'm studying..
Queen Sirikit is a common name and as such, it is easily confused with many types. Search the species Mussaenda phillippica for a more accurate example. You will also find there are many cultivars which represent different bract colours, growth habit shape & size. Common names are a pit fall and don't trust every picture to be true to its name .
