''Salpiglossis sinuata'', the painted tongue, scalloped tube tongue, velvet trumpet flower, palito amargo ( Spanish : ''bitter little stick'' - from the extreme bitterness of its leaves) or panza de burro ( Spanish : ''donkey's paunch'' ), is a

flowering plant Flowering plants are plants that bear flowers and fruits, and form the clade Angiospermae (), commonly called angiosperms. The term "angiosperm" is derived from the Greek words ('container, vessel') and ('seed'), and refers to those plants th ...

belonging to the subfamily

Cestroideae Cestroideae (syn. Browallioideae) is a subfamily of the plant family Solanaceae, the nightshades. It currently contains the three tribes and seven genera, as follows: *Browallieae Hunz. **''Browallia'' L. **''Streptosolen'' (Benth.) Miers *Ce ...

of the nightshade family Solanaceae, native to southern

Chile Chile, officially the Republic of Chile, is a country in the western part of South America. It is the southernmost country in the world, and the closest to Antarctica, occupying a long and narrow strip of land between the Andes to the east a ...

Description

''Salpiglossis sinuata'' is an

annual Annual may refer to: *Annual publication, periodical publications appearing regularly once per year ** Yearbook ** Literary annual *Annual plant *Annual report *Annual giving *Annual, Morocco, a settlement in northeastern Morocco *Annuals (band), ...

or short-lived

perennial A perennial plant or simply perennial is a plant that lives more than two years. The term ('' per-'' + '' -ennial'', "through the years") is often used to differentiate a plant from shorter-lived annuals and biennials. The term is also wid ...

herbaceous plant growing to tall, rarely up to tall. The leaves are long, elliptic to lanceolate, with a wavy, lobed or toothed margin. The

flower A flower, sometimes known as a bloom or blossom, is the reproductive structure found in flowering plants (plants of the division Angiospermae). The biological function of a flower is to facilitate reproduction, usually by providing a mechani ...

s have a five-lobed funnel-shaped corolla, up to long and diameter, each lobe with a notched apex, velvety in texture, either violet or orange, and have contrasting darker stripes along each petal.

Cultivation and uses

Of the two species in its genus, ''Salpiglossis sinuata'' is the more commonly grown as an

ornamental plant Ornamental plants or garden plants are plants that are primarily grown for their beauty but also for qualities such as scent or how they shape physical space. Many flowering plants and garden varieties tend to be specially bred cultivars that ...

for

garden A garden is a planned space, usually outdoors, set aside for the cultivation, display, and enjoyment of plants and other forms of nature. The single feature identifying even the wildest wild garden is ''control''. The garden can incorporate bot ...

s. It was introduced to the northern hemisphere in the 1820s. A number of

cultivar A cultivar is a type of cultivated plant that people have selected for desired traits and when propagated retain those traits. Methods used to propagate cultivars include: division, root and stem cuttings, offsets, grafting, tissue culture ...

s have been selected for different flower colours. It is grown in full sunlight.''RHS A-Z Encyclopedia of Garden Plants'' pub. Dorling Kindersley 2008 .

Gallery

File:Template Flower1.JPG, Close-up of flower of yellow-flowered cultivar of ''S. sinuata''. File:Salpiglossis sinuata (8705629035).jpg, ''S. sinuata'' : habit study and close-up of giant red-flowered form. File:Salpiglossis sinuata.jpg, ''S. sinuata'' : close-up of pale purple-flowered form. File:Salpiglossis sinuata 'Kew Blue' - Longwood Gardens - DSC01082.JPG, Growth habit of blue-flowered form "Kew Blue". File:PaintedTongue.jpeg, Bed of ''Salpiglossis sinuata'' plants with flowers of three different colours.

References

Cestroideae Flora of Chile Garden plants of South America Plants described in 1798 {{Solanales-stub