Kalanchoe insignis ( Brown 1905b : t. 8036), , Brown, 1905

Smith, Gideon F., 2023, A nomenclatural and taxonomic review of the names and new combination published between 1886 and 1931 in Kalanchoe (Crassulaceae subfam. Kalanchooideae) by British botanist Nicholas Edward Brown (1849 - 1934), Phytotaxa 630 (4), pp. 266-280 : 274-275

13. Kalanchoe insignis ( Brown 1905b: t. 8036) N.E.Br. in Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew (1931: 109).

Basionym:— Cotyledon insignis Brown (1905b : t. 8036).

Type:—[Nyasaland] MALAWI.“Raised from seeds sent to Kew by John Mahon in 1898 from Nyasaland.Cultivated at Kew Gardens”, specimen prepared on 11 February 1905, N.E. Brown s.n. (lectotype, K barcode K000232908 [image available at http://specimens.kew.org/herbarium/K000232908]!), here designated.

Taxonomic notes:—At present the name K. insignis is treated as a synonym of K. elizae Berger (1903: 69) ( Fig. 1H ) (see for example Fernandes 1980: 362–366, 1983: 56, Descoings 2003: 155, and Berger 2020: 229). N.E. Brown was not the first to confuse a species of Kalanchoe with a species of Cotyledon . Earlier, his colleague John G. Baker published the name C. pannosa Baker (1881: 269) for what proved to be a redescription of K. eriophylla Hils. & Bojer ex Tulasne (1857: 149) (see Smith & Figueiredo 2023b: 278–279).

Later, Raymond-Hamet (1916: 83–84) and Boiteau & Mannoni (1949: 113) and, more recently, Boiteau &Allorge-Boiteau (1995: 114) also reflected on the relationship between Kalanchoe and Cotyledon . In the case of Raymond-Hamet (1916: 83–84) he linked the two genera especially in terms of K. [subg. Kalanchoe ] sect. Raveta Smith (2022d: 210) (see also Smith 2022e, f). In contrast, Boiteau & Mannoni (1949: 113) and Boiteau & Allorge-Boiteau (1995: 114) suggested a link between “ K. [subg. Bryophyllum ] [unranked] Streptanthae ” Boiteau & Mannoni (1949: 113), nom. inval. ( Turland et al. 2018: Art. 39.1), i.e., K. [subg. Bryophyllum ] sect. Streptanthae Smith (2023d: 278), in which they included K. streptantha Baker (1887: 472) only, and Cotyledon (see Smith 2022g: 168–169).

Nomenclatural notes:—When describing Cotyledon insignis , the basionym of K. insignis, Brown (1905b : t. 8036) stated that: “This fine Cotyledon is one of the most distinct in the genus, differing in habit from all other known species. Its flowers have some resemblance to those of C. curviflora, Sims (B. M. t. 2044) [i.e., Sims (1819: t. 2044)], but in all other respects it is entirely different. It was discovered on one of the mountains of Nyasaland, British Central Africa [ Malawi], at an elevation of 7000 feet [~ 2133 m], by Mr. John Mahon, who sent seeds of it to Kew in 1898, where it first flowered in February of this year [1905].” Brown (1905b: t. 8036) did not cite any specimens.

Fernandes (1983: 56) lists a “ J. Mahon ” specimen held at Herb. K as the “ holotype ” of the name C. insignis . However, since Brown (1905b: t. 8036) did not cite any material when he described the species, and since there is no indication that Brown (1902b: 110) used only the lectotype designated here, the Herb. K-held N.E. Brown s.n. with barcode K000232908, when publishing the name (Turland et al. 2028: Art. 9.1(b )), the name C. insignis does not have a holotype. The sentiment that the name K. insignis has a “ holotype ” was echoed on a determinavit label attached to the Herb. K specimen, K000232908, but this is not correct.

The Herb. K specimen, K000232908, was distinctly not prepared by Mahon, who rather is credited as having introduced seed to Kew from “ Nyasaland ” in 1898, seven years before the specimen was prepared, and to prevent further confusion, the name K. insignis is here lectotypified on N.E. Brown s.n., barcode K000232908, which may or may not have been the “ J. Mahon ” specimen that Fernandes (1983: 56) had in mind.

The Herb. K-held specimen N.E. Brown s.n., with barcode K000232908, has a label attached that states: “Raised from seeds sent to Kew by John Mahon in 1898” and gives the country of origin as “ Nyasaland [ Malawi]. Cultivated at Kew Gardens.” Since C. insignis , i.e., K. insignis , was raised from seed it is very likely that Brown had multiple specimens at his disposal. N.E. Brown s.n. (barcode K000232908) is therefore regarded as lectotype of the name C. insignis , the basionym of K. insignis .

Figures

FIGURE 1. A–B. Two Kew botanists appointed in the 1860s and 1870s, in sequence: A. John Gilbert Baker (1834–1920) and B. Nicholas Edward Brown (1849–1934). C–G. A selection of species described in Kalanchoe by N.E. Brown. Where necessary, the nomenclature reflects the currently accepted names of the taxa. C. Kalanchoe ×kewensis N.E.Br., non K. ×kewensis W.Watson, an illegitimate homonym (see text for a discussion). D. Kalanchoe lateritia is the accepted name of K. kirkii. E. Kalanchoe lanceolata is the accepted name of both K. diversa and K. ellacombei. F. Kalanchoe prasina is an accepted species. G. Kalanchoe sexangularis is an accepted species. H. Elise [Eliza] Keller (1869–1944), the wife of the botanist Alwin Berger (1871–1931), is commemorated in K. elizae, the currently accepted name of K. insignis. Kalanchoe elizae was the first name published in Kalanchoe to honour a woman. The name was published in January 1903 by Berger, four months before he and Keller got married. The photograph reproduced here was taken in 1935 while Elise was visiting her son, Fritz, in Pasadena, U.S.A. Photograph credits: A. Photographer unknown. Public Domain. http://www.plantillustrations. org/illustration.php?id_illustration=176522. B. Photographer unknown. Public Domain. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/N._E._Brown#/ media/File:NEBrown04.jpg. C–G. All photographs taken by Gideon F. Smith. H. Photographer unknown; © of and reproduced with the permission, through Lutz Schmalfuss, of the Alwin-Berger-Archivs, Bürgerverein Möschlitz e.V., Germany.