472 'rrttiANDRTA tetbagynia, Potatnogeton. 



water mucli shorter than the \Gcives.— Stipules solitary, axillary, 

 shealhing, length of the petioles, sht halfway or more on the inside. 

 ^Veduncles solitary, axiliary, or opposite to a leaf, round, rather 

 thicker, smooth, and nearly as long as the cylindiic spike, which 

 each suppurls.— iVoifc'ers bmall, numerous, green.— Ca/(/^' none. — 

 Tetals long-clawed, nearly round, incurved, fleshy ; concave within, 

 convex on the back, permanent.— H/a/72e//?s none. Anthers, four 

 pairs attached to the claws of the petals on the inside.— Gjr,;is four, 

 ovate-oblong, one-ctlled, with one ovula in each. Styles short, and 

 thick. Stigmas a dark speck on the apex of the styles. — Drupes 

 obovate sruooth, JSuf conform to the drupe, one-celled. — Einbrt/o 

 curved, as represented by Ga:rtner in P. uaians, vol. ii. t. 84. 



3. P. tuberosum, R' 



Leaves alternate, and only opposite at the floriferous forks, sessile, 

 linear, much waved, entire, clear, when dry membranaceous. 



Found immersed in extensive masses, in Ponds, Lakes, and 

 receptacles of fresh water in Bengal, during the dry season, chiefly 

 when in flower in February, it rises so near to the surface as to 

 allow the lilile spikes of flowers to emerge completely. 



Rout of lonu simple fibres, brown, &c. according to the colour 

 of the mud they enter; on the creeping joints are generally found 

 small roundish-lobate, viviparous tubers. — Stems and branches of 

 various lengths, according to the depth of the water, &c. a groove 

 on each side gives them the aj)^)earaiice of being compressed, thick 

 as a pack-threail, smooth, at the bottom of the water creeping, 

 towards the extremities when in flower dichotomous ; previously to 

 that period the branches are alternate and axillary. — Leaves sessile, 

 alternate, except at the floriferous fork of the branches, where they 

 are opposite, linear, rather obtuse, much waved, finely and acutely 

 serrulate, with two slender nerves near the margin, pellucid, from 

 two to three inches long, by little more than a quarter of an inch 

 hroad.— Stipules sheathing, short, smooth, greenish like the other 

 parts of the plant, and scarcely to be distinguished from thein.— 



