An emended description of the poorly known Begonia serotina A.DC. (Begoniaceae) is provided and B. asympeltata L.B.Sm. & Wassh. is newly synonymised with that species. The classification of Begonia serotina in B. sect. Knesebeckia (Klotzsch) A.DC. is confirmed. Begonia compacticaulis Irmsch. is shown to be a synonym of B. ludwigii Irmsch., while the circumscription of B. compacticaulis in the Flora of Ecuador is shown to be based on specimens of both B. ludwigii and B. serotina. Begonia serotina is more widely distributed than previously recorded and is newly reported from Ecuador’s Los Rios, Bolivar and Loja provinces and Peru’s Tumbes region. Begonia serotina is reassessed as Vulnerable (VU), according to IUCN criteria.

This work synthesises information about plant diversity of 37 sites of coastal and inland swamp forests of southeast and southern Brazil and investigates floristic similarities and differences among them. Swamp forests often show low species richness, diversity and evenness, which are associated with the selective character of oxygen deprivation caused by soil waterlogging. However, our results pointed out some degree of site-level variation (Sobs = 5 to 110; Sjack1 = 6 to 151; H′ = 0.82 to 3.98; J′ = 0.51 to 0.87) related to local ecological conditions. Two major phytogeographical patterns emerged from our work: the strong influence of the neighbouring non-flooded vegetation on the flora of swamp forests and its high spatial heterogeneity. At least 85.9% of the 518 species sampled are found in neighbouring non-flooded vegetation. A correspondence analysis consistently separated swamp forests of the coastal plain from those of the plateau. A Mantel test indicated a significant correlation between floristic and geographical distances among sites (r = 0.45; p = 0.001), and highlighted the main effect of regional-scale changes in the flora of swamp forests. We conclude that swamp forests of southeast and southern Brazil cannot be considered a distinguishable floristic unit.

We evaluated the systematic relationship of the two sections of Raphanus (Brassicaceae) on the basis of morphological and ITS data. We obtained strong support that Raphanus is a polyphyletic group embedded in the Oleracea lineage of the tribe Brassiceae. Section Raphanis, which includes Raphanus raphanistrum, R. pugioniformis and R. sativus, is a strongly supported monophyletic lineage. Section Hesperidopsis is embedded in a different lineage together with Brassica deflexa and B. aucheri. We propose to reinstate the genus Quidproquo in place of Raphanus sect. Hesperidopsis as reflected by both morphological data and ITS phylogeny.

Facchinia Rchb. (Alsinoideae–Caryophyllaceae), earlier found not to be part of Minuartia s.str., is here revised. The genus contains seven species, one of which has two subspecies. Seven new combinations are made: Facchinia cerastiifolia (Ramond ex DC.) Dillenb. & Kadereit, F. cherlerioides (Sieber) Dillenb. & Kadereit, F. cherlerioides subsp. aretioides (Port. ex J.Gay) Dillenb. & Kadereit, F. grignensis (Rchb.) Dillenb. & Kadereit, F. herniarioides (Rion) Dillenb. & Kadereit, F. rupestris (Scop.) Dillenb. & Kadereit, and F. valentina (Pau) Dillenb. & Kadereit. Keys to Minuartia s.str., the Old World segregate genera of Minuartia s.l., and to the species and subspecies of Facchinia are provided. All taxa are described and mapped, and some are illustrated.

This study aims to understand the distribution of species of Jacquemontia (Convolvulaceae) in Brazil and to determine the centre of endemism of the genus in that country. A database of around 2000 records of samples deposited in 46 herbaria was created. Twenty-one species were classified as widely distributed, of which 14 have continuous distributions and seven have disjunct ones. The remaining 26 species were classified as restricted and among these, 14 were considered endemic and 12 microendemic. The centre of endemism of the genus is in the Espinhaço Range, which traverses Bahia and Minas Gerais. The distribution patterns are discussed and a new assessment for the Red List of Jacquemontia is suggested.

A new species, Rhododendron pseudomaddenii A.A.Mao & M.Bhaumik (Ericaceae), is described and illustrated from India.

The authorship of the name Bauhinia diphylla (Fabaceae: Caesalpinioideae) has to be attributed to Banks instead of Buchanan-Hamilton. A lectotype is designated here for Bauhinia diphylla Banks [= Lysiphyllum diphyllum (Banks) de Wit].

The island of Folegandros, located between the Milos and Santorini archipelagos in the southern Kiklades (Greece), constitutes together with Ios and Sikinos the south-central part of the phytogeographical region of the Kiklades. Its flora consists of 474 taxa, 47 of which are under statutory protection, 40 are Greek endemics and 145 are reported here for the first time. We show that Folegandros has the highest percentage of Greek endemics in the phytogeographical area of the Kiklades. The known distribution of the endemic Muscari cycladicum subsp. cycladicum is expanded, being reported for the first time outside the South Aegean Volcanic Arc. The floristic cross-correlation between Folegandros and other parts of the phytogeographical region of the Kiklades by means of Sørensen’s index revealed that its phytogeographical affinities are stronger to Anafi Island than to any other part of the Kiklades.

The Pleistocene Arc Theory (PAT) suggests that present-day disjunct fragments of dry forests in central tropical South America give evidence of a previously more continuous distribution during the Pleistocene that has been disrupted by dry-cold vs. humid-warm climatic cycles. This Arc extends from NE Brazil to NE Argentina and eastern Paraguay, through the Chiquitanía to NW Argentina and SW Bolivia and into the dry inter-Andean valleys in Peru and Ecuador, with intrusions into the Great Chaco. Seasonally Dry Tropical Forests (SDTFs) are floristically and physiognomically dominated by woody legumes, mostly deciduous in the dry season. In the last two decades field collection and research on legume taxa has greatly increased, with a significant number of taxonomic revisions and molecular phylogenetic studies, together with some paleoclimatic modelling studies. The evidence accumulated in the last 23 years has confirmed the integrity of the Chaco and Caatingas phytogeographical provinces, with an impressive and increasing level of botanical endemism discovered. The PAT pattern has also been supported, specifically through the mapping of five selected woody Leguminosae species (Anadenanthera colubrina, Enterolobium contortisiliquum, Pterogyne nitens, Amburana cearensis and Piptadenia viridiflora). The pre-existing nuclei of South American SDTF (Caatingas, Misiones and Piedmont) are now increased to four with the postulation of the Chiquitanía Nucleus in south-eastern Bolivia and bordering Paraguay. Some new endemisms are compiled from recent literature and mapped for the Misiones and Chiquitanía nuclei. The need for more botanical collections and further taxonomic, phylogenetic and demographic studies of South American legumes is emphasised.

The species of Podocarpus L’Hér. ex Pers. (Podocarpaceae) occurring on the islands of the Caribbean (excluding Trinidad and Tobago) are revised. Nine species are recognised, of which eight are known to be endemic to the Caribbean Bioregion. None of the species have infraspecific taxa. Four occur on Cuba, two on Hispaniola, two on Jamaica, and one on Puerto Rico and the Lesser Antilles. Keys are provided to all the species and to the species of Cuba, Hispaniola and Jamaica. The distributions of all species are mapped and discussed in relation to the geological history of the region as well as the climate, especially rainfall. The names Podocarpus urbanii Pilg. and Podocarpus buchii var. latifolius Florin are lectotypified. Revised or new IUCN conservation assessments are proposed for Podocarpus angustifolius, P. aristulatus and P. victorinianus and the existing assessments are detailed for the remaining species.

William Griffith wrote an account of the plants collected by Theodore Cantor in 1840 while on a military expedition to Chusan in China. This was published posthumously in 1854, but was also distributed in 1844 or 1845 as a preprint. The 14 new names at species rank appearing in the paper are reviewed (including the often overlooked Leucopogon ophirensis and Corylopsis grata) and their typification considered. Lectotypes are designated for 10 of these names, one second-stage lectotypification is proposed, and Corylopsis griffithii Hemsl. is also lectotypified.

Eriocaulon biappendiculatum, a new species of Eriocaulaceae from the southern Western Ghats, India, is described and illustrated. The new species is close to Eriocaulon nairii but differs in having 5–17 peduncles, free male sepals, and both continuous ribbon-like and setiform appendages on the seeds.

We present a new species of Meliaceae, Cedrela ngobe Köcke, T.D.Penn. & Muellner, from Panama and Costa Rica. A detailed description with illustrations and a distribution map are provided. Based on distribution data and climatic niche modelling, the species is classified as Vulnerable according to IUCN Red List categories.

Stephania pierrei Diels (Menispermaceae) is a species recorded from the Indo-Chinese Peninsula. It is the only species of the genus bearing apetalous flowers. Diels did not cite a holotype in his publication in 1910. We provide here a more precise description of Stephania pierrei and select a lectotype for this name.

The new species Gyrocheilos orbiculatum D.J.Middleton (Gesneriaceae) is described and illustrated.

A new species of Kuepferia (Gentianaceae), K. pringlei D.Maity & Sentu K.Dey from north Sikkim, Eastern Himalaya, is described and illustrated. Details of habitat, phenology and conservation status are given, and it is compared to related species. This previously undescribed species is most similar to, but distinct from, Kuepferia leucantha (Harry Sm. ex T.N.Ho & S.W.Liu) Adr.Favre, known from Bhutan and China.