49. Carthamus.] 78. COMPOSIT.i^. 



49. CARTHAMUS, L. Safflower. 

 Herbs with alt. spineseeiit leaves. Heads normally liomogamous, 

 Invol. bracts many-seriate, inner dry, outer with a foliaceous toothed 

 or spinescent appendage (sometimes disappearing- in cultivation). 

 Receptacle flat bristly. Florets yellow, Avhite or pxirplish, lierm., 

 rarely a few marginal male or neuter, tube slender, limb dilated 

 5-cleft, segments long linear. Fil. hairy in the middle, anther bases 

 sagittate, auricles connate with short fimbriate tails. Cypsele 

 glabrous, obovoid, 4 angled or compressed, basal areole oblique or 

 lateral. Pappus or paleaceous. 



1. C. tinctorius, L. ; Kusumb, kajirah, Vern. 



An erect branching herb 1-2 ft. high with broad-lanceolate, 

 spinosely serrate (rarely unarmed) sviberect oblong sessile leaves and 

 large terminal heads 1-1 "S" long of orange-red flowers. Outer invol. 

 bracts large foliaceous ovate-oblong 1-1-5" long constricted above the 

 base, green, visually spinous, inner ovate-oblong or lanceolate acute. 

 Oypsele obovoid 4-angled truncate with 4 bosses at the top. 



Cultivated formerly in Patna. Gya and Mouab.yr,and occasionally in Hazaribagh, 

 but the cultivation appear.s to be dying out. Soane River, J.D.R. ! Fl., Fr. Feb.- 

 April. 



The very spinose form is known as Kiitela in Patna, and is probably nearer the 

 original wild plant which may have been C. oxijacantha (wild in the Punjab and 

 Avestwards to Caucasu-s;. The almost spineless form is known as hhuili in Patna 

 ( Watts). 



The plant is cultivated not only for the dye derived from the flowers but also 

 the oil derived from the seeds. 



Cichorium Intybus, L., is the Chicory and its var., Endicia, is the Endive ; the 

 latter is cultivated. It is distinguished from the tj'pe by its leaves being oblong 

 sinuate instead of runcinate. The flowers are a beautiful blue in heads 1-1-5" diam. 

 with the corollas all ligulate. 



50. CREPIS, L. 



Herbs with milky or Avatery juice and radical or alt. often amplexi- 

 caul entire toothed or pinnatifid leaves. Heads peduncled, yellow or 

 red, fls. all ligulate and herm. Invol. bracts many-seriate imbricate 

 or outer very much shorter than the linear 1-seriate inner. Cypsele 

 fusiform or oblong rarely short and cylindric, glabrous or scaberulous, 

 10-20-ribbed, tip narrowed, pappus usually copioiis, silvery with 

 simple (not feathery) hairs which are rarely brownish, stiff or brittle. 



A genus closely allied to Lactuca and Lannsca. From Lactuca our 

 •species may be distinguished by the cypseles gradually narrowed 

 from the middle to each end, not distinctly beaked, terete or usually 

 only slightly compressed, and from Launsea by the many ribs.* They 

 belong to the section Yoimgia, which Clarke (Comp. Ind) considei'S 

 should be united to Lactuca; some of the cypseles in a head may often 

 be found considerably compressed. 



Leaves runcinate or pinnatifid. Heads under "25" long . . . \. Japonica. 

 Leaves linear sul>entire. Heads over "o" long 2. acauUii. 



* In C. ac-iiiilif:, however, the finer ribs between the -1-6 strong ones are not always 

 very clear, Ijut seem to be rather the normal surface of the cyp.sele in which is a 

 groove, and as the cypseles are often conipressed Clarke placed this species in 

 Lactuca, Sir J. D. Hookfr considereil that it belonged to Crepig in virtue of its 

 habit. The slight neck distinguishes it from Laumea. 



494 



