\'i,viir. T.KGUMixos.f:. 4 11 



long, shortly stalked, tln-ir rhaeliises pul)esc!iil, eiuluig in a woak 

 spine. Leadets 10-15 pair.-", rathor distant, ;| by ^ in., nieinltranous, 

 glaucous, linear-oblong, acute, glabrous or nearly so above, finely pubes- 

 cent beneatb, base ol)li([iie. Flowers in dense globose heads ; peduncles 

 often geminate, l-l-^ in. long, slender, pubescent, elongate and slightly 

 thickened in fruit. Calyx yV~8 "^* ^^^"f^' tubuloso-cainpanulate, mem- 

 branous ; teeth short, triangular. Petals -^ in. long, spathulate-oblong, 

 iiulurated at the tip, whitish. Stamens 10, much exserted ; anthers not 

 gland-crested. Ovary shortly stalked, slightly pubescent. Pods 5-6 by 

 ;f-| in., straight, flat, oblicpiely triangular at the apex, narrowed at the 

 base into a stalk J-.j in. long, glabrous. Seeds 15-20. PI. B. I. v. 2, 

 p. 290 ; Talb. Trees, ~Bomb. ed. 2, p. 150 ; Woodr. in Journ. Bomb. Nat. 

 V. 11 (180S) p. 428; Watt, Diet. Econ. Prod. v. 4, p. 632. Acacia 

 r/l(tvca, Willd. Sp. PI. v. 4, p. 1075 ; Grrah. Cat. p. 58. Acacia leaco- 

 ci'phitla. Link, Enum. v. 2, p. 444 ; Dalz. & Gibs. Suppl. p. 26. — Flowers : 

 July-Oct. Veen'. Kuhdhhal. 



A native of Tropical America naturalized in the Bombay Presidency and more or 

 less througliout India. It is common in gardens, where, owing to its spreading roots, 

 it is ditlicult to eradicate. — Distiub. Tropical Asia and Africa, but probably indigenous 

 oidj in Tropical America. 



78. MIMOSA, Linn. 



Herbs, shrubs, or small trees with or without prickles. Leaves 

 2-pinnate. Leaflets small, usually sensitive. Flowers polygamous, 

 minute, in dense globose heads or cylindric spikes, often tetramerous ; 

 peduncles axillary, solitary or fascicled, the up])er often forming a 

 raceme. Calyx usually minute, almost inconspicuous. Petals more or 

 less connate, valvate. iStamens equal in number to the petals or twice 

 as many, free, exserted ; anthers small, not gland-crested. Ovary se-^sile 

 or stalked; ovules many; style filiform ; stigma small, terminal. Pods 

 fiat, made up of 1-seeded joints that separate when ripe from the p^n*- 

 sistent sutures. Seeds ovoid or orbicular, flat. — DisxiiiB. Chiefly 

 Tropical American ; species about 230. 



Pinna; of the leaves 1-2 pairs 1. M. picdica. 



Pinna; of the leaves more than 2 pairs. 



Pod glabrous, the sutures not prickly 2. M. ruhicaulh. 



Pod pubescent, the sutures prickly 3. M. hiduata. 



1. Mimosa pudica, Linn. Sp. PL (1753) p. 518. A diffuse under- 

 shrub I5-3 ft. high ; stems and branches sparingly prickly and clothed 

 with long weak bristles from bulbous bases. Leaves sensitive, digitate ; 

 petioles 1-2 in. long, bristly ; stipules 3 in. long, linear-lanceolate, acute, 

 bristly ; pinnae 1-2 pairs, 2-3 in. long, sessile or nearly so, their rhachises 

 clothed with ascending bristles. Leaflets 12-20 pairs, 5-5 by ■!■ in., 

 sessile, coriaceous, linear-oblong, acute, glabrous above, clothed with 

 oppressed bristles beneath, base obliquely rounded. Flowers 4-merous, 

 pink, in globose heads, |-j in. in diam. ; peduncles |-1 in. long, prickly, 

 usually in axillary pairs all along the branches ; bracleole solitary, linear, 

 acute, ciliolate. Calyx very minute. Corolla pink, -iV~tV ^"- l*^"o> 

 divided about 3 the way down; lobes 4, ovate-oblong, obtuse. Stamens 

 4, much exserted; anthers not gland-crested. Pods h-'l by \-]r in., flat, 

 slightly recurved, consisting of 3-5 one-seeded joints which fall away 

 from the persistent sutures which are clothed with spreading yellowish 



2u" 



