. 344 



ILLUSTRATIONS OF INDIAN BOTANY, 



PRINCIPALLY OF THE SOUTHERN PARTS OF THE 



PENINSULA. 



By Richard Wight, M. D., &c. &c. 



[Continued from Page 110 of the present Volume.] 



XL 

 VALLISNERIA ALTERNIFOLIA. 



DiCECIA DiANDRIA. Nat. Ortl. HYDROCHARIDEiE. JuSS. 



Gen. Char. Flores dioici. — Masc. Spadix conicus, undique 

 tectiis flosculis ; spatha inclusus. Perianthium 3-partitum. 

 Stam. 2. — F(E3i. Spatha monoi^liylla, uniflora. Perian- 

 thium 3-6-partitum. Stigma 3, bifida, extus quandoque 

 appendiculata. Bacca unilocularis, cylindracea, poly- 

 sperma. Semina parietalia. Br. 



Vallisneria alternifolia ; caulescens, foliis lanceolato-lineari- 

 bus alternis denticulato-serratis, floribus sessilibus. 

 (SuppL. Tab. XL) 



Vallisneria alternifolia. Roxh. MSS. in Mus. of E. Ind. C. 

 n. 996. Hamilton in Brewst. Journ. v. 1. p. 34. 



Roots fibrous. St€7ns branched, filiform, submersed, 

 glabrous. Leaves alternate, most of them approxii«»te, 3-4 

 inches long, grass-like, without any distinct nerve, but 

 striated longitudinally, and beautifully reticulated, often 

 twisted, acute, the margins serrated, the base amplexicaul. 

 Flowers sessile, axillary, usually in pairs, dioecious. Male 

 spatha resembling a capsule, broadly ovate, acute, com- 

 pressed, diaphanous, opening into two concave, membranous, 

 minutely striated and reticulated valves. Spadix about 

 half the length of the spatha, covered with numerous small 

 pedicellated Jlotoers, which, at first sight, resemble seeds. 

 At the time the anthers of these flowers are mature, the 

 pcdicelsy which bear flowers, spontanepusly separate from 



