G2 Lxxi. cojrposiT.T!;. 



Dirt. Econ. Prod, v, 6, part 3, p. 27"). Sonrhns ciliatus. Lam. Fl. Fr. 

 V. 2 (1778) p. 87 ; Wight, Icon. t. 1141. — Flowers : Sept.-Feb. A^iiuy. 

 j\J7iatara. 



Probably an iutroduetion. In Graham's Catalogue of Bombaj' plants tlie plant is 

 iiieutioned as occurring in Deccan gardens, but it has since spread itself tolerably 

 widely tln-ougliout tliat Province. Konkan : Matheran, Coo/iC ! Deccan: Woodrow ; 

 Bijapur, Coukc ! S. M. Country : Belgauni, llitchie, 367 ! Gujarat : Surat, Nbnmo 

 ex Graham. Bind : Jemadar ka Landa near Karachi, Stocks ! — Distuib. Througlioiit 

 India sparingly ; all temperate and many tropical countries, wild or introduced. 



2. Sonchus asper, lUU, Herh. Brit. v. 1 (1709) p. 47. Annual, 

 glabrous or sparsely glabrous above ; stem branched. Leaves sessile, 

 slightly rugose; the eauline elliptic-oblong entire, or runcinate or pin- 

 natifid, i-amplexicaul with rounded appressed auricles, undulate, spinous- 

 dentate or simply dentate. Heads crowded in an irregular umbel ; 

 flowers yellow. Invol.-bracts glabrous. Pappus copious, very slender, 

 white. Achenes ^ in. long, much compressed, elliptic in outline, longi- 

 tudinally striate by fine distant ribs, not transversely muricula''e. Fl. ii. 

 I. V. 3, p. 414 ; Aitch. Pb. & tSind PI. p. 82 ; C. B. Clarke, Comp. Ind. 

 p. 275 ; Syme, Eug. Bot. ed. 3, v. 5, p. 154 ; AVoodr. in Journ. Bomb. 

 Nat. v. 11 (1SU8) p. 651.— Flowers : Jan.-Mar. A-'ern. Mhatara. 



The plant is considered by Bentham to be a variety of Sonchus 

 oleraceus, Linn., from which it differs in the achenes, which are not 

 transversely rauriculate, and in the leaf -auricles, which in S. asper are 

 rounded and appressed, in S. oleraceus acute and spreading. 



Not common, probably introduced. Deccan : Sinliagad, Wooclrom I ; Poona, 

 Woodrow. SiND : SfocAs I — Distrib. Throughout India, sparingly ; all temperate 

 and many tropical countries, wild or introduced. 



3. Sonchus arvensis, Lhm. /Sj). PI. (1753) p. 793. A tall 

 perennial ; rootstock with long slender creeping stolons which send up 

 small tufts of radical leaves; stems glabrous, more or less angular, 

 2-5 ft. high, hollow below. Leaves 6-12 in. long, green and shining 

 above, glaucous beneath, glabrous ; lower leaves narrowly oblanceolate, 

 subacute, entire or pinnatifid or runcinate-pinnatiiid ; middle and upper 

 eauline leaves lanceolate, or the uppermost linear, usually undivided, 

 abruptly acuminate, i-amplexicaul with short rounded appressed auricles, 

 all more or less undulate and with spinous-dentate margins. Heads 

 few, 1-2 in. across, umbellately corymbose ; peduncles glandular-hairy ; 

 flowers bright yellow. Invol.-bracts clothed (as is often also the ujipcH- 

 part of the stem) with long hairs tipped witli greenish-yellow glands. 

 Pappus white, silUy, scarcely exceeding the invol.-bracls. Achenes 

 scarcely compressed, longitudinally ribbed and transversely rugose. 

 Fl. B. i. v. 3, p. 414 ; Syme, Eng. IBot. ed. 3, v. 5, p. 154 ; C. B. Clark", 

 Comp. Ind. p. 276; AVoodr. in Journ. Bomb. Nat. v. 11 (1898) p. 651 ; 

 AV^itt, Diet. Econ. Prod. v. 6, part 3, p. 275. ^^nichus Wir/htiamis, DC. 

 Prod. V. 7 (1838) p. 187; AVight, Icon. 1. 1142.— Flowers : Dec- 

 Jan. 



Pare. Dkccan: Bijapur, Woodrow. 



Tiie occurrence of this plant in tiie Bombay Presidency is somewhat d.mbirul. 

 \Vooth-ow in his list of Bombay Plants gives it as occurring at liijapur, bul 1 have 

 seen no specimens from tliat locality, and there are none from Bombay in Herb. Tvew. — 

 ])iSTi;in. Vcrv sjiaringly throughout the ]ilains of India, more eonimnn on the hills ; 

 all tempi-rate and many tropicid counli-ies. wild oi- inl mdiu'ed. 



