- 
Commelina. ; TRIANDRIA MONOGYNIA. 179. 
A native of Hindoostan and introduced into the Botanic Garden 
by Colonel. Hardwicke, where it blossoms in March and April, at 
which time the plant is destitute of leaves, nothing being seen but 
the racemes ornamented with large lively blue flowers round the apex. 
Root perennial, composed of several, smooth, elongated tubers, 
with a few filiform radicles.—Stems none, except the sheathing bases 
of the leaves which appear a month or two after the flowers ; these 
are ensiform, waved, acute, smooth, and marked with several vinis 
veins ; length from four to eight inches, breadth about one.—Ra- 
-cemes diem erect, straight, smooth, invested at each of the re- 
mote two or three joints, with a smáll, solitary. sheath ; ; these sheaths - 
toward the top are more approximated, each of them there embrac- 
ang the insertion of a branchlet which bears several pedicelled fow- 
ers.— Ca/yx the three leaflets thereof broad- lanceolate, and consider- . 
ably shorter than the corol.— Pe/a/s equal, round, concave.— Necta- 
ries alternate with the stamens, hairy.— Filaments three, alternate 
with the petals, longer than the filaments of the nectaries, and like 
them hairy about the middle. Anthers blue.— Pistil declining. Stig- 
ma minutely three-toothed. 
9. C. herbacea. R. E. 
Herbaceous. Stems jointed, ascending.. Leaves lanceolate, die- 
iles terminal. Petals equal. Capsules three-celled, many-seeded. 
—À native of Sumatra, from. thence introduced into the Botanic 
Garden by Dr. Charles Campbell, wie it blossom and Seems its 
seeds during the whole year. 
Root perennial; consisting of long, firm, thick fleshy fibres. Stems — 
‘Several from the same root, herbaceous, jointed, ascending, round, 
Smooth, much swelled at the joints, from two to three feet in height, i. 
nearly the whole enveloped in the sheath of the leaves.— Leaves alter- ' - 
“nate, sessile on their sheatlts, lanceolate, smootb, slightly marked. with 7 
five parallel nerves, margins entire, waved, somewhat membranace US, 
and coloured, Sheaths shorter than the joints, striated, and sm 20 
cept afew white hairs round their mpais A ss, terminal E 
: wW 2° RA PA T E. T td. 
NN 
