50 MELASTOMACEiE 



for the parts being all in threes ; three short calyx teeth, 

 three showy petals, three stamens with anther-cells 

 slightly divaricate at the base, and a three-celled ovary 

 with single stvle and numerous ovules on axile placentas. 

 Fruit an obovoid capsule opening in three valves. 



Species about 60 in tropical India and Malaya. On the 

 Nilgiris and Pulneys ihey are rare but occasionally met with 

 in cultivation. 



The name is taken from the Kanarese. 



KEY TO THE SPECIES. 



(Stem ere( t. Leaves thin, with arching or pinnate nerves, b. 

 Stem erect. Leaves fleshy ......... c. 

 Stem creeping . . S. pulneyensis 

 Stemless, leaves orbicular, deeply cordate. S. rotundifolia 

 ( Erect herb, with thick stem and mauve flowers. S. elegans 

 b < Undershrub ; petals rose coloured, one side darker 



(^ S. versicolor 



Leaves ovate, 7 to 8 ribbed. Calyx glandular. S. speciosa 

 Leaves, lanceolate, three-ribbed. Calyx glabrous 

 ( S. grandiflora 



Soncrila speciosia Zenk. ; F.B.L ii 534, X 20. Stem 

 nearly or quite glabrous. Leaves petioled, 2 to 3 by I J^ 

 to 2 inches, ovate-acute, finely serrate, with 5 to 9 basal 

 nerves which curve forwards and meet at the apex. 

 Upper flowering portion of the stem hirsute, red, 

 bifurcating cymosely into two one-sided racemes. 

 Calyx tube with much brown hair. Petals ovate-acute, 

 pink. Capsule definitely but lightly six-ribbed. Seeds 

 numerous, with raised points and a large raphe, like a 

 hood at one end. t. 337. Wight. Tc. t. 995-2. Sp. Nilg. 

 t. 67/2. 



In moist places, near Avalanche, etc. [ Wight], 



Soncrila grandiflora Wall ; F.B.L ii 535, X 21. Stem 

 woody below, round, with numerous prominent leaf- 

 scars. Leaves elliptic, acute at both ends, finely serrate. 

 Flowers crowded in short, one-sided racemes. Calyx 



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