Gesneriads are among the most interesting and desirable of all horticultural and botanical subjects.  The family is highly diverse, distributed throughout the tropics and into the north and south temperate zones, often very beautiful and amenable to both indoor and outdoor cultivation when reasonable conditions are provided.  It includes such popular plants as the African Violet (Saintpaulia hybrids), the Gloxinia (Sinningia hybrids) and the Lipstick Plant (Aeschynanthus species), as well as many other genera of horticultural significance, such as Streptocarpus (Cape Primrose).

The Gesneriad Reference Web documents the Gesneriaceae, with well over 2000 images and a number of botanically-oriented articles. If you are looking for a specific plant or topic, the Search page is your best starting point, and provides an easy way of navigating to areas of special interest.  For a complete alphabetical listing of all images (with hyperlinks) click on Image Index in the list to the left.  Genera leads to a listing of the genus pages, and these in turn have thumbnail images which can be clicked to go to the full-page images. Site History leads to a page with information on the latest changes to the site.   Other links are self-explanatory. 

We're pleased to note that a comprehensive new article is now posted.  This is Gesneriaceae:  A Scientific Perspective, and has been prepared by Dr. Anton Weber of the University of Vienna.  Dr. Weber is an expert on the Gesneriads, and has conducted extensive research on the family.  This illustrated article is an excellent introduction to the natural history and essential character of the Gesneriaceae.

From time to time, short-term items will be posted on the Feature page.  These may be a report on a recent gesneriad event or show, or other gesneriad-related items of current interest.

We hope that you enjoy yourselves in your perambulation through the GRW, and that the site also informs and educates.  Feedback is always appreciated, as we are always seeking to provide the most useful information in the most useful way.