''Procris repens'' is a species of

flowering plant Flowering plants are plants that bear flowers and fruits, and form the clade Angiospermae (), commonly called angiosperms. They include all forbs (flowering plants without a woody stem), grasses and grass-like plants, a vast majority of ...

in the

nettle {{redirect, Nettle Nettle refers to plants with stinging hairs, particularly those of the genus ''Urtica''. It can also refer to plants which resemble ''Urtica'' species in appearance but do not have stinging hairs. Plants called "nettle" include ...

family,

Urticaceae The Urticaceae are a family, the nettle family, of flowering plants. The family name comes from the genus '' Urtica''. The Urticaceae include a number of well-known and useful plants, including nettles in the genus ''Urtica'', ramie (''Boehmer ...

, commonly known as the ''watermelon begonia'' or ''sisik naga'', although the latter name may also refer various ''Pyrrosia'' species. ''P. repens'' is an interesting specimen to demonstrate the metamorphosis of

chloroplasts A chloroplast () is a type of membrane-bound organelle known as a plastid that conducts photosynthesis mostly in plant and algal cells. The photosynthetic pigment chlorophyll captures the energy from sunlight, converts it, and stores it i ...

(outward of cell) to

amyloplast Amyloplasts are a type of plastid, double-enveloped organelles in plant cells that are involved in various biological pathways. Amyloplasts are specifically a type of leucoplast, a subcategory for colorless, non-pigment-containing plastids. Amylop ...

s (inward of cell) if studied with a microscope. Under its

synonym A synonym is a word, morpheme, or phrase that means exactly or nearly the same as another word, morpheme, or phrase in a given language. For example, in the English language, the words ''begin'', ''start'', ''commence'', and ''initiate'' are al ...

''Elatostema repens'' it has won the

Royal Horticultural Society The Royal Horticultural Society (RHS), founded in 1804 as the Horticultural Society of London, is the UK's leading gardening charity. The RHS promotes horticulture through its five gardens at Wisley (Surrey), Hyde Hall (Essex), Harlow Carr (No ...

Award of Garden Merit The Award of Garden Merit (AGM) is a long-established annual award for plants by the British Royal Horticultural Society (RHS). It is based on assessment of the plants' performance under UK growing conditions. History The Award of Garden Merit ...

. ''E. repens'' var. ''pulchrum'' has also won the award. ''Procris repens'' is also commonly referred to as ''Pellionia repens,'' although this name is now regarded as a synonym of ''Procris repens''.

Biology

Description

''P. repens'' is a small herbaceous creeper that can reach 15 cm in height and 60 cm in length. Its leaves have toothed edges and are usually 2.5 to 10 cm in length and 2 to 5 cm in width. Its distinctive leaves have a pattern that resembles

watermelon Watermelon (''Citrullus lanatus'') is a flowering plant species of the Cucurbitaceae family and the name of its edible fruit. A scrambling and trailing vine-like plant, it is a highly cultivated fruit worldwide, with more than 1,000 var ...

rinds or the foliage of certain ''

Begonia ''Begonia'' is a genus of perennial flowering plants in the family Begoniaceae. The genus contains more than 2,000 different plant species. The Begonias are native to moist subtropical and tropical climates. Some species are commonly grown ind ...

'' species and may fade to completely purple or brown with age.

Distribution

''P. repens'' is distributed over a wide area, from southern China in the north down to

Indonesia Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania between the Indian and Pacific oceans. It consists of over 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, Java, Sulawesi, and parts of Borneo and New Guine ...

in the south. It mainly grows in primary forests in

tropical The tropics are the regions of Earth surrounding the Equator. They are defined in latitude by the Tropic of Cancer in the Northern Hemisphere at N and the Tropic of Capricorn in the Southern Hemisphere at S. The tropics are also referred to ...

and subtropical climates.

Ecology

''P. repens'' is a food plant for various ''

Hypolimnas ''Hypolimnas'' is a genus of tropical brush-footed butterflies commonly known as eggflies or diadems. The genus contains approximately 23 species, most of which are found in Africa, Asia, and Oceania. One species, the Danaid eggfly (''H. misipp ...

'' caterpillars.

References

Urticaceae Taxa named by João de Loureiro {{urticaceae-stub