Seemannia Regel is a genus of the family Gesneriaceae which for awhile was placed in genus Gloxinia until 2005. It is an almost exclusively Andean genus with the greatest concentration of species in Bolivia, northern Argentina and southern Peru. Flowers are often red or pink, and the genus is in wide cultivation. Sources: Gesneriad Reference Web and Plants of the World Online.
Seemannia gymnostoma (Griseb.) Toursark. is native to southern Peru, Bolivia, and NW. Argentina. This Bolivian native is a tall (more than 1 m) summer growing rhizomatous winter dormant plant. It needs time to grow, but then flowers for a long time and has a relatively short dormancy. Photos taken by Johannes-Ulrich Urban of a cultivated plant grown under glass.
Seemannia nematanthodes (Kuntze) K.Schum. has a native range from Bolivia to Argentina. It grows to 30 cm. Photos 1 and 2 by Johannes-Ulrich Urban are of a Bolivian native that flowers profusely for a long time in summer and is dormant in winter. It seems to be identical to the form 'Evita'. That form Nicholas Plummer find grows equally well in a pot or the ground in North Carolina. He notes: "In autumn, the above-ground stems, thin underground rhizomes, and roots die back, leaving small, scaly rhizome segments that look disturbingly like maggots. These rhizomes can be left in the soil or stored dry in a plastic bag."
Seemannia purpurascens Rusby. has a native range in the Guianas, Peru, Bolivia, and Brazil. This Bolivian native is a very tall (up to 1.5 m) summer grower. It will flower very well in late summer but needs a long time to grow tall first. Short winter dormancy. Can be kept shorter in smaller pots with less fertilizer. Excellent outdoors in warm enough climates. Photos 1 and 2 taken under glass in Germany by Johannes-Ulrich Urban.
Seemannia sylvatica (Kunth) Hanst. Native range is Ecuador to Brazil and Paraguay.