Cir. AMARAXTACEJ;. 489 



female flowers scarcely yL in. long ; sepals 5, oblong, obtuse, apiculate. 

 Stamens 5. Capsule jL in. long, ovoid, thickened at the top, circum- 

 scissile abovit the middle, membranous, rugose ; styles 2, divaricate, 

 pubescent. Fl. B. I. v. 4, p. 718 ; Grab. Cat. p. 169 ; Dalz. & Gibs. 

 p. 216 ; Wight, Icon. t. 513 ; Trim. Fl. Ceyl. v. 3, p. 396 ; Woodr. in 

 Journ. Bomb. Nat. v. 12 (1899) p. 363 ; Prain, Beng. PI. p. 869 ; Watt, 

 Diet. Econ. Prod. v. 1, p. 215. — Flowers : Sept. Ybbn. Kdnte-Mdth. 



Widely distributed throughout the Presidency in waste places, rubbish-heaps, aud 

 fields. — DiSTRiB. Throughout India ; Ceylon, many tropical countries. 



The leaves make a fairlj- good spinach, though difficult to pick owing to the axillary 

 spines. The root has considerable repute in native medicine. See Watt, Diet. Econ. 

 Prod. 1. c. 



2. Amarantus paniculatus, Linn. Sp. PI. ed. 2 (1763) p. 1406. 

 A tall handsome plant 4-6 ft. high or more ; stem stout, grooved and 

 striate, glabrous or sliglitly pubescent. Leaves 2-6 by 1-3 in., elliptic- 

 lanceolate, acute or acuminate, base cuneate ; main nerves numerous, 

 slender, prominent beneath ; petioles 1-4 in. long. Flowers numerous, 

 in dense thyrsoid gold-colored- or red spikes, the central spikes the 

 longest ; bracteoles ^-^ in. long, acicular, exceeding the sepals. Perianth 

 Y^-^ in. long ; sepals 5, oblong-lanceolate, acute, shortly awned. 

 Stamens 5. Capsules g in. long, ovoid, narrowed at the tip, circum- 

 scissile about the middle ; styles 3, short. Seeds ^V~tV ^^' ^^ diam., 

 subglobose, white, red or black. Fl. B. I. v. 4, p. 718 ; Dalz. & Gibs. 

 p. 215 ; Duthie, Field & Gard. Crops, part 3, p. 23, t. 68 ; Woodr. in 

 Journ. Bomb. Nat. v. 12 (1899) p. 363; Prain, Beng. PI. p. 869. 

 Amarantus frumentaceus, Buch.-Ham. in Eoxb. Fl. lud. v. 3 (1832) 

 p. 609 ; Wight, Icon. t. 720 ; A. DC. Orig. PL Cult. ed. 3 (1886) p. 282 : 

 Watt, Diet. Econ. Prod. v. 1, p. 211. — Vebn. Rdjgira. 



Cultivated for its farinaceous grain, wliich forms the staple food of the poorer 

 classes of the hill tribes in many parts of India. — Distrib. Cultivated or as an escape 

 in E. and W. Asia and Africa. 



3. Amarantus gangeticus, Linn. Syst. Nat. ed. 10 (1759) p. 1268. 

 An erect herb 2-4 ft. high ; stem stout, branching above the middle, 

 often tinged with purple, grooved and striate, glabrous or nearly so. 

 Leaves variable, 2-6 by 1-4 in., rhomboid-ovate or lanceolate or deltoid- 

 ovate, obtuse, finely apiculate, often notched at the tip, glabrous, base 

 long-tapering, decurrent on the petiole ; main nerves numerous, promi- 

 nent beneath ; petioles 1-3 in. long. Flowers clustered in the axils and 

 forming a long terminal more or less interrupted spike ; bracteoles ^ in. 

 long, narrowly lanceolate-subulate, with a slender awn, membranous. 

 Perianth i in. long ; sepals 3, lanceolate, with a long capillary awn, 

 membranous. Stamens 3. Capsules ^-^ in. long, ovoid, suddenly nar- 

 rowed at the apex, circumscissile about the middle, rugose, membranous ; 

 stvles 3, distinct. Seed -^^ in. in diam., lenticular, smooth and shining, 

 black. FL B. I. v. 4, p. 719 ; Trim. Fl. Ceyl. v. 3, p. 396; Woodr. in 

 Journ. Bomb. Nat. v. 12 (1899) p. 363 ; Prain, Beng. PL p. 869 ; Watt, 

 Diet. Econ. Prod. v. 1, p. 212. Amarantus oleraceus, AVilld. Sp. PL v. 4' 

 (1805) p. 386 («oi of Linn.); Eoxb. Fl. Ind. v. 3, p. 605; Grab. Cat. 

 p. 169; Wight. Icon. t. 715; Watt, Diet. Econ. Prod. v. 1, p. 214. 

 Prain (Beng. PL 1. c.) unites with this, A. lanceolatus, Roxb., A. atro- 



