Antigonon
(from anti, against or opposite, and gonia, an angle). ORD. Polygonaceae. Elegant stove climbers. Flowers racemose, cirrhose at the apex of the rachides; petals five, three outer ones broadly cordate, two inner oblong. Leaves alternate, cordate. Although extremely handsome plants, they are difficult to flower. They seem to succeed best when planted out in a very thoroughly drained border over hot-water pipes or flues, the long climbing stems being trained near the glass in full light.
A. amabile (lovely).* fl. bright rose, profusely borne in axillary and terminal racemes. l. 3in. to 5in. long, ovate-cordate, and deeply lobed at the base. It is of free slender growth, the young shoots are pubescent, and having a slight reddish tinge. An exceedingly attractive and effective species. A. guatemalensis (Guatemala). Probably the same as A. insigne. A. insigne (remarkable).* fl. very numerous, borne in tufts along the sides of long racemes or panicles, which terminate in branched tendrils; the calyx, which is the showy part of the flower, has five membranous sepals, the three outer are of a beautiful rosy pink colour, about 1in. in length by rather less in breadth, cordate at the base, oblong, rounded towards the apex; the two inner sepals about the same length as the outer ones, but much narrower, falcate, lanceolate; pedicels 3/4in. long. l. broadly ovate oblong, deeply cordate at the base, with two rounded lobes; 4in. by 3in., the upper ones smaller, supported on short terete downy stalks. Stems slender, angular, pubescent. Columbia, 1876.
A. leptopus (slender-stemmed). fl. numerous; the outer three sepals of a beautiful rose colour, the centre of a much deeper tint; racemes secund, bearing several coloured bracts as well as flowers, and end in a branched tendril. l. alternate, cordate, petiolate. Stem slender, sub-pubescent. Mexico, 1868.