Begonia sect. Petermannia (Begoniaceae) is revised for the Philippine island of Palawan. Three species are recognised, namely Begonia palawanensis Merr. and the newly described B. androturba C.Coyle and B. georgei C.Coyle.

The genus Stichoneuron (Stemonaceae) with five species is revised. Three new species are described: Stichoneuron calcicola Inthachub, S. halabalensis Inthachub, and S. bognerianum Duyfjes. A key to the species, distribution map and descriptions are provided.

Two new species of Begonia (Begoniaceae), Begonia didyma D.C.Thomas & Ardi and Begonia guttapila D.C.Thomas & Ardi, are described from the Latimojong Mountains, South Sulawesi (Sulawesi Selatan), Indonesia. Both species belong to Begonia sect. Petermannia.

Of the 25 species presently named in Henckelia sect. Loxocarpus (Gesneriaceae), 10 occur in Peninsular Malaysia (with one species extending into Peninsular Thailand), 12 in Borneo, two in Sumatra and one in Lingga (Indonesia). One species from Peninsular Malaysia is excluded from the section. A key to species in Peninsular Malaysia is provided, together with descriptions and distributions. Three new species are described: Henckelia anthonysamyi Banka, H. sekayuensis Banka & Kiew and H. sericiflava Kiew & Banka. All Peninsular Malaysian species are endemic, many narrowly so – eight are presently known from just one or two localities.

Over the last three decades, vegetation surveys in southwest Arabia have documented the existence of a small number of valley forest patches. A well-known area is in Wadi Rijaf, Jabal Bura, a protected area which has recently been surveyed by the current authors. The other valley forest sites in southwest Arabia have not been surveyed for over 15 years. This paper presents a descriptive study of five of these important valley forest localities. To provide an assessment of conservation value, field studies recorded the extent, quality and composition of the vegetation and the presence of regionally rare species. The significance of these remaining patches of Arabian forest, and the immediate threats to their survival, are also discussed.

Species delimitation in Scaphium (Sterculioideae, Malvaceae/Sterculiaceae) has been problematic and has led to confusion in identification of species. The genus was last revised in 1953 and at that time comprised four species. Since then five new species have been published. This revision of Scaphium recognises eight species, with other names being accounted for in synonymy or by exclusion from the genus.

Inselbergs are rocky environments that support a unique flora distinct from that of the surrounding area. The objectives of this work were to conduct a floristic inventory of an inselberg in the semi-arid region of Northeast Brazil, and to investigate the relationship between its flora and the flora of the surrounding area. The following questions were addressed: is the species richness comparable to other inselbergs in northeastern Brazil; is the floristic composition of the inselberg more similar to other inselbergs or to the surrounding Caatinga vegetation; and do the similarities in the floristic composition of inselbergs depend on the distance between them? This work documents 201 species in 62 families. Cyperaceae (28 spp.), Euphorbiaceae (19), Poaceae (15), Orchidaceae (11) and Bromeliaceae (9) are the most species-rich families. On the inselberg the plants are distributed in islands found on exposed rock, in fissures and in depressions in the rock. Variations in species richness in the region were assessed by comparison of floristic inventories conducted in other inselbergs of the semi-arid region with those of this study. The flora of the inselberg under investigation is more similar to the flora of other nearby inselbergs than to the vegetation of the surrounding semi-arid region.

Dysoxylum middletonianum Takeuchi (Meliaceae) is described from previously unexplored habitats in the Southern Fold Mountains of Papua New Guinea. The new plant is the smallest Dysoxylum in eastern Malesia and one of only two species with whip infructescences.

New combinations are made in the fern genera Colysis, Cyclosorus, Haplopteris and Selliguea from Thailand. A new combination for Pteridaceae subfamily Cryptogrammoideae is made.