Dombeya

Dombeya
Pink-ball (Dombeya wallichii) inflorescence
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Plantae
Clade:	Tracheophytes
Clade:	Angiosperms
Clade:	Eudicots
Clade:	Rosids
Order:	Malvales
Family:	Malvaceae
Subfamily:	Dombeyoideae
Genus:	Dombeya Cav. (1786)
Species
Several, see text
Synonyms[1]
Acropetalum A.Juss. (1849), nom. superfl. Assonia Cav. (1786) Astrapaea Lindl. (1821) Cavanilla J.F.Gmel. (1792) Hilsenbergia Bojer (1842), nom. illeg. Leeuwenhoeckia E.Mey. ex Endl. (1839), not validly publ. Vahlia Dahl (1787), nom. illeg. Walcuffa J.F.Gmel. (1792) Walkuffa Bruce ex Steud. Xeropetalum Delile (1826)

Dombeya is a flowering plant genus. Traditionally included in the family Sterculiaceae, it is included in the expanded Malvaceae in the APG and most subsequent systematics. These plants are known by a number of vernacular names which sometimes, misleadingly, allude to the superficial similarity of flowering Dombeya to pears or hydrangeas (which are unrelated). Therefore, the genus as a whole is often simply called dombeyas. The generic name commemorates Joseph Dombey (1742–1794), a French botanist and explorer in South America, involved in the notorious "Dombey affair", embroiling scientists and governments of France, Spain, and Britain for more than two years.