Gesneriaceae, the gesneriad family, is a family of flowering plants consisting of about 152 genera and ca. 3,540 species in the tropics and subtropics of the Old World and the New World, with a very small number extending to temperate areas. Many species have colorful and showy flowers and are cultivated as ornamental plants.
Episcia is a genus of flowering plants in the African violet family, Gesneriaceae. The ten species it contains are native to the tropical regions of Central and South America. The species are perennial herbaceous plants characterized by a stoloniferous habit, red flowers, and frequently have marked or patterned leaves. Episcias are sometimes called flame violets.
Columnea is a genus of around 200 species of epiphytic herbs and shrubs in the family Gesneriaceae, native to the tropics of the Americas and the Caribbean. The tubular or oddly shaped flowers are usually large and brightly colored – usually red, yellow, or orange – sometimes resembling a fish in shape. A common name is flying goldfish plants due to the unusual flower shape.
Kohleria is a New World genus of the flowering plant family Gesneriaceae. The plants are generally tropical herbs or subshrubs with velvety stems and foliage and brightly colored flowers with spots or markings in contrasting colors. They are rhizomatous and commonly include a period of dormancy in their growth cycle. The genus was revised in 1992 and was then recognized as having 19 species distributed in Central America and South America. phylogenetic in 2005 indicated that the epiphytic genus Capanea is derived from within Kohleria, and the two species of Capanea were subsequently transferred to Kohleria. The genus Pearcea is closely related.
Pearcea is a genus of tropical herbaceous plants in the family Gesneriaceae native to western South America. It is classified in tribe Gloxinieae and is closely related to the genus Kohleria, in which some of its species were previously included. The genus Parakohleria has recently been synonymized under Pearcea, a conclusion later supported by molecular analyses that showed that Pearcea hypocyrtiflora was nested within the former Parakohlerias.
Besleria is a genus of ca. 200 species of large herbs and soft-stemmed subshrubs or shrubs in the flowering plant family Gesneriaceae. They occur in Central America, South America, and the West Indies.
Sinningia is a genus of flowering plants in the family Gesneriaceae. It is named after Wilhelm Sinning (1792–1874), a gardener of the Botanische Gärten der Friedrich-Wilhelms-Universität Bonn. There are about 65 species of tuberous herbaceous perennials, all occurring in Central and South America, with the greatest concentration of species occurring in southern Brazil.
Nematanthus is a genus of flowering plants in the family Gesneriaceae. All of its species are endemic to Brazil. Compared to other gesneriads, Nematanthus has leaves that are small, succulent, and hard-surfaced. The plant has a trailing, branching, and spreading habit; it is generally an epiphyte in nature and a hanging-basket plant in cultivation. The flower has fused petals. In some species, the flower has a "pouch" at the bottom. The fancied resemblance of such flowers to a goldfish gives these plants the common name goldfish plant or guppy plant.
Alloplectus is a genus of Neotropical plants in the family Gesneriaceae. A recent revision of the genus includes five species, with the majority of species in the genus as traditionally circumscribed being transferred to Crantzia, Glossoloma, and Drymonia.
Gasteranthus carinatus is a species of flowering plant in the family Gesneriaceae. It is a shrub or subshrub endemic to Ecuador. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical moist lowland forests and subtropical or tropical moist montane forests.
Gasteranthus extinctus is a species of flowering plant in the family Gesneriaceae. It is endemic to Ecuador. Its natural habitat is subtropical or tropical moist montane forests. The species is a small herb that produces bright orange flowers that gave rise to the genus name Gasteranthus.
Reldia is a genus of plants in the family Gesneriaceae. They are also in the Beslerieae tribe.
Codonanthe is a genus of mainly epiphytic plants in the family Gesneriaceae, endemic to the Atlantic Forest of Brazil. The botanical name comes from the Ancient Greek for 'bellflower'. They have white or pale pink flowers and somewhat fleshy leaves. In 2013, the genus was reduced in size when more than half of the species were transferred to Codonanthopsis. They can be grown as houseplants, particularly in hanging baskets. Artificial crosses with Nematanthus hybrids have produced the hybrid genus × Codonatanthus.
Columnea consanguinea is a species of flowering plants in the genus Columnea. They are endemic to Colombia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, Nicaragua, and Panama. They are distinctive for possessing red translucent heart-shaped markings on their leaves that serve to attract their main pollinators - the hummingbird Heliodoxa jacula - to their more inconspicuous flowers.
Corytoplectus is a genus in the plant family Gesneriaceae. Plants from Corytoplectus are found in Bolivia, Brazil North, Colombia, Ecuador, Guyana, Mexico Southwest, Peru, Venezuela, in the cloud-forests of the high cordillera. The genus contains c. 12 species. The genus differs from the closely related Alloplectus in having an erect umbellate inflorescence and berries. The type species is C. capitatus.
Codonanthopsis is a genus of flowering plants in the family Gesneriaceae. Its native range is from southern Mexico through tropical America to Bolivia and most of Brazil. Codonanthopsis species are generally trailing epiphytes with pale flowers. Most have a mutualistic relationship with tree-living ants: the plants provide the ants with food, including nectar, and give their nests structure and support, while the ants disperse the plants' seeds. The genus was considerably expanded in 2013 when species were transferred from Codonanthe. Some Codonanthopsis species are cultivated as houseplants, when they may be grown in hanging baskets.
Cremosperma is a genus of flowering plants belonging to the family Gesneriaceae.
Rufodorsia is a genus of epiphytic flowering plants in the family Gesneriaceae. The genus name refers to the reddish back of the upper lobes of the flower. The relationship of Rufodorsia with the genus Oerstedina is uncertain, as of April 2021. It is native to montane cloud forest in Central America.
Oerstedina is a genus of epiphytic flowering plants in the family Gesneriaceae, native to Mexico, Costa Rica and Panama. The relationship of Oerstedina to the genus Rufodorsia is uncertain, as of April 2021.
Moussonia is a genus of plants in the family Gesneriaceae. Its native range stretches from Mexico to Central America. It is found in Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico and Panamá.
