CXXXY. C'OMMELIKACE,E. 789 



in terminal (rarely axillary) panicles ; branches of panicles long, scarred 

 above ; flowers iu subglobose or subcorymbose cymes at the ends of the 

 branches ; pedicels ^-^ in. long ; bracts ^ in. long, cyrahiform, caducous. 

 Sepals i by Jq in., oblong, obtuse. Petals suborbicular, blue or purple. 

 Stamens 2 perfect, 2-4 sterile ; filaments of the fertile only or of all 

 bearded. Ovary 3-eelled ; cells 2-ovulate ; style naked. Capsule ^ in. 

 long, 3-gonously subglobose, membranous, mucronate, smooth, 3-celled, 

 with 2 seeds in each cell. Seeds j\ in. long, truncate at one end, 

 rounded at the other, angular on the inner, rounded on the outer face, 

 tuberculate, dark brown. ¥1 B. I. v. 6, p. 378 ; Dalz. & Gibs. p. 253 ; 

 Clarke, in DC. Monog. Phan. v. 3 (1881) p. 210; Trim. Fl. Ceyl. v. 4, 

 p. 308 ; Woodr. iu Journ. Bomb. Nat. v. 12 (1899) p. 525 ; Prain, 

 Beng. PI. p. 1084. Commelina niidijfora, Linn. Mantiss. p. 177 (not of 

 Sp. PL) ; Grah. Cat. p. 223.— Flowers : Sept. 



Throughout the Presidency tolerably common. Gujarat : Domas near Surat, 

 Cooke 1; Godra, Cooke \, Woodrow. — Distrib. Throughout India; Ceylon, China, 

 Malay Islands. 



Var. compressa, Clarke, in DC. Monog. Phan. v. 3 (1881) p. 211. 

 Leaves shorter, more fleshy ; petals rose-colored ; ovary often with 3 

 ovules in each cell ; capsules often with 3 seeds in each cell. Fl. B. I. 

 V. 6, p. 379. Aneihma compressum (sp.), Dalz. in Kew Journ. Bot. v. 3 

 (1851) p. 138; Dalz. & Gibs. p. 253. 



Konkan: M-'AhwAn, DaLeUl 



8. Aneilema sinicum, Lindl. Bot. Reg. (1822) t. 659. Root of 

 elongate tubers ; stems 1-2 ft. high, suberect, glabrous, with long 

 internodes. Leaves 6-12 by |-| in., linear, acute, cauline and tufted at 

 the base of the stem, glabrous or nearly so ; sheaths long, ciliate. 

 Flowers in terminal lax panicles ; branches of the panicle closely scarred 

 above ; bracts | in. long, ovate, acute, membranous, caducous ; pedicels 

 0-i in. long. Sepals ovate, acute, concave. Petals exceeding the 

 sepals, obovate or suborbicular, blue. Stamens 2 fertile, twice as long 

 as the staminodes, with bearded filaments ; 1 rudimentary stamen 

 consisting of a bearded filament with an acute antherless apex and 3 

 sterile stamens, the filaments of which are naked. Ovary with 2 ovules 

 in each cell. Capsules subglobose, \ in. in diam., 3-celled, each cell 

 1-2-seeded. Seeds yV in. long, obscurely rugose. F'l. B. I. v. 6, p. 379; 

 Clarke, in DC. Monog. Phan. v. 3 (1881) p. 212 ; Woodr. iu Journ. 

 Bomb. Nat. v. 12 (1899) p. 525. Aneilema secundum, Wight, Icon. v. 6 

 (1853) p. 31, t. 2075. 



KoNKAN : stocks ! Deccan : Mahableshwar, Cooke ! ; Wada, Woodrow.— DisimB. 

 India (W. Peninsula) ; Africa, China, Malay Islands. 



9. Aneilema giganteum, R. Br. Prodr. (1810) p. 271. Root 

 fibrous, the fibres thick but scarcely tuberous ; stem 1-3^ ft. high, erect, 

 glabrous or nearly so, with long internodes. Leaves : the lowest 10-18, 

 the upper 2-5 in. long, |-| in. broad, linear, finely acuminate, flat, 

 striate, narrowed into a short or long sheath. Flowers h in. across in 

 terminal (rarely axillary) panicles ; primary branches 3-4, umbellate, 

 each again branched, the ultimate branches deeply, closely (almost 

 pectinately) scarred ; bracts at the axils of the branches of the panicle 

 large, broadly ovate, cordate, acute ; bracteoles \-l in. long, orbicular, 



