Introducing, Medinilla annulata

Plants from the genus Medinilla are among the most spectacular shrubs a gardener can possibly have, with the aptly named Medinilla magnifica taking the lion's share of the attention, though with serious competition from Medinilla 'Gregori Hambali'. For such a large and diverse genus, relatively few are known in cultivation. Medinilla annulata is one of those obscure species that is rarely represented in private collections, although these are by no means rare plants. This species is known from Sulawesi, and Luzon, Polillo, Catanduanes, Mindoro, and Leyte islands in the Philippines, where they grow often as epiphytes from sea level to about 900 m elevations.

As is often the case with many medinillas, the number of floral segments may diverge from the usual in some instances. A flower with four segments is shown here.

Medinilla annulata is a slender species that clamber onto surrounding vegetation for support. When the stems come into contact with any substrate, these produce roots to firmly anchor the plant to its host. The five-petalled flowers are white suffused with pink, and are clustered in whorls around a drooping rachis. To be honest, the floral display isn't too attractive, although the berries are quite eye-catching, being a vibrant red. What I like about this species is that the satiny leaves are prominently bullate. Not too many medinillas have such textural effect. Another curious trait is the dense indumentum covering the stems. These are almost a centimeter in length, dark brown and very dense. Those growing on the internodes are quite soft, but the ones on the nodes are stiff and bristly.

Never mind the flowers, I like the leaves better!

This monkey of a plant even have hairs along the veins and the leaf margins.

New growths of Medinilla annulata are brown-colored.

My plant is grown in a clay pot with a loose, highly organic mix and watered frequently. They like it shady, but too much can cause the already long stems to elongate further. Still, this is a medium-sized species which won't take too much space even in a small greenhouse. I might try and germinate some seeds and perhaps make the resulting seedlings available to other growers- this is a curious plant, and if grown in a large hanging basket can certainly command attention with those dangling, hairy stems that can make a bigfoot proud, and those shapely, puckered leaves. If really well-grown, those pendent, 35 cm long inflorescences can make quite a statement if produced in large enough numbers. Otherwise, laziness might prevail and I just might leave those succulent fruits to the same birds who eat my strawberries before I can even harvest them 😁

A newly developing rachis opened up its first flower.