478 XCIX. PL.VNXAGINACl!:.!:, 



exceeding the leaves. Flowers in ovoid 8])ikes g-l^in. long; bracts 

 4, in. long, cucullate, broadly ovate-oblong, obtuse, membranous except 

 the green midrib. Calyx ^-i in. long ; sepals ovate-oblong, subacute, 

 all membranous except the midrib which in the inner sepals is very 

 narrow, sometimes almost 0. Corolla glabrous ; tube g in. long ; lobes 

 8 by j^ in., ovate, acute, concave. Capsules i in. long, 2-seeded, ovoid, 

 subobtuse, pale-brown, smooth, the top coming off as a conical lid. 

 Seeds ^ in. long, oblong, boat-shaped, nearly black. Fl. B. I. v. 4, p. 706 ; 

 Woodr. in Journ. Bomb. Nat. \. 12 (1899) p. 3();3 ; Watt, Diet. Econ. 

 Prod. V. 6, part 1, p. 284. — Veen. Gajpipall. 



Rare. Sind : Boogta hills, Vicary\ — Distrib. India (Panj/ib plains, Malwa) ; 

 westwards to Egypt and Greece. 



4. Plantago ovata, Forsh. Fl. J^ijypt.-Arah. (1773) p. 31. A stem- 

 less or nearly steiiiless softly hairy or woolly annual. Leaves 3-9 in. 

 long, scarcely reaching \ in. broad, narrowly linear or filiform, finely 

 acuminate, entire or distantly toothed, attenuated at the base, usually 

 3-nerved. Scapes longer or shorter than the leaves, glabrous or pubes- 

 cent. Flowers in ovoid or cyl'ndric spikes l-^h in. long ; bracts ^ in. 

 long and about as broad as long, broadly ovate or suborbicular, concave, 

 membranous except the narrow midrib, glabrous. Calyx ^ in. long, 

 usually glabrous ; sepals elliptic, obtuse, concave, scarious except the 

 midrib which is as broad (or nearly so) in the inner as in the outer 

 sepals. Corolla-lobes rounded, ^ in. long, concave, obtuse, apiculate, 

 glabrous. Capsules \ in. long, ellipsoid, obtuse, the upper half coming 

 off as a blunt conical lid, membranous, glabrous. Seeds ^ in. long, 

 ovoid-oblong, boat-shaped, smooth, yellowish-brown. Fl. B. I. v. 4, 

 p. 7U7 ; Woodr. in Journ. Bomb. Nat. v. 12 (1899) p. 3G3 ; Watt, Diet. 

 Econ. Prod. v. (3, part 1, p. 285. Plantago Ispaghida, lloxb. Fl. Ind. 

 V. 1 (1832) p. 404.— Vern. Ispaghul. 



Doubtfully indigenous in Sind. Stocks says it oorurs in gardens near Karachi. — 

 DisTitiis. India (Panj:ib plains and low hills from tiie Sutlej westwards ; in other 

 parts f'ultivated) ; westwards to Spain and the Canary Islands. Under the name 

 Ispaghul or Spiu/el, the seeds are largely imported into Bombay from Persia, and 

 valuable medicinal properties are ascribed to them. Tiiey form with boiling water a 

 rich tasteless mucilage which is employed as a remedy for diarrlicea and dysentery 

 and generally as a demulcent. See Watt, Diet. Econ. Prod. 1. c. 



5. Plantago ciliata, Desf. Fl. Atlmt. v. 1 (1798) p. 137, t. 39. 

 Annual or perennial, often dwarf, stemiess or very shortly caulescent, 

 densely silky or woolly. Leaves 1-4 by i-J- in., usually oblaneeolate, 

 mueroiiate, densely silky or villous, entire or slightly and irregularly 

 toothed, base tapering into a long or short petiole which is often obsciu-e 

 owing to the decurrence of the leaf-blade. Scapes stout, numerous, 

 softly woolly, shorter or longer than the leaves. Flowers in ovoid or 

 cylindiic spikc^s h-^j in. long; brarts ^-4 in. long, ovate-oblong, obtuse, 

 hairy and ciliate witii long slender hairs, membranous except the green 

 midrib. Calyx J^ in. long ; sepals oblong-obovate, membranous, with a 

 green midrib (tliat of the inner sepals very narrow), hairy on the back 

 with lojig slender hairs. Corolla-tube ^ in. long, glabrous; lobes Jjj in. 

 long, ovate-lanceolate, acuminate, finely pointt-d, silky-hairy on the back. 

 Capsules subglobos(% 1 in. long, 2-seeded, the top coming off as a sub- 

 hemispherical lid. Seeds ,-',-,- in. long, broadly ovoid, boat-shaped, with 



