78. COMPOSITE. [51. Lactuca. 



3. C. japonica, Be7ith. ; Syn. C. lyrata, Clarke. 



An elegant herb, varying much in stature at the time of flowering-, 

 6" to 2 ft. high with stems simple or branched, glabrous or slightly 

 villous, naked or sjDarsely foliose. Leaves mostly radical in a rosette, 

 membranous, lyrate runcinate or pinnatifid, from lo" in small 

 specimens to 8" long in robust ones. Heads very small, •lo--23" long, 

 copiously panicled, inner invol. tubular with aboiit 8 linear glabroiis 

 bracts, Avith base of midrib thickened in fruit and united Avith the 

 similar thickenings of the other bracts, outer bracts few, very short. 

 FloAvers 10-20 in a head with very short spreading ligules. Cypseles 

 •07" long, rich red-brown when ripe, slightly tapering each end, 

 compressed and often slightly curved, Avith about 12 fine ribs or 

 ridges, scaberulovis above. 



Chiefly on clamp banks under shade. Champaran ! Sinorbhum! Ranchi,. 

 a^^cendhi"' to top of the pats ! Parasnath ! ^lAnhhum, Campbell I Annual. Fl., 

 Fr. March- June and Sept. -Nov.. perhaps a]l the year round. 



Stems angular, corymbosely branched above and with scattered slender branches 

 below in luxuriant specimen.s. Radical leaves with denticulate or mucronate lobes, 

 often puberulous both sides. Petiole sletider short. Cauline leaves smaller, and 

 those subtending the upper branches filiform. Pappus white '1" louii. 



2. C. acaulis, Hook. f. Syn. Lactuca glabra, DC. 4' Clarke (Comp. 

 lad.). 

 A dAA-arf herb Avith flowering stems scarcely more than 2" high (just 

 after the jungle fires) or erect and attaining 12". Leaves very narroAv, 

 linear, Avidest in middle or somewhat Avider upAvards, 3-6" long, entire 

 or denticulate or sinuate-dentate, glabrous except the papillose 

 margin, scarcely petioled or petiole amplexicaul. Heads cymose on 

 pedicels -3-1 3" long. Invol. narroAV -S-'G" long, bracts about 6-8, 

 linear-oblong Avith a fcAv outer shorter ones. Florets about 12, -G-'T" 

 long, yelloAv. Cypsele •2--25" long, grey, somcAvhat attenuate upAvards 

 from the middle Avith a short neck, slightly narroAved at base, with 

 about 5-6 A'ery strong I'ibs and the intermediate spaces each Avith a 

 darker narroAv groove in their centre. 



On the plateaux, usually conspicuous on th6 bare ground aliter jungle fires. 

 Chota Nagpur, frequent on the pats and on the hills ! Kalahandi ! Fl., Fr. March- 

 June. 



Rootstock deep fleshy. Stems usually with few leaves. Pedicels with a few 

 bracteoles. Heads •"-■9' diam. Bracts gieen, 3-uerved, with scarious margins. 

 Pai:)pus '2.5" long, Avhite soft silky, mici'oscopically barbellate. 



51. LACTUCA, L. 



Herbs Avith milky juice. Leaves radical and alternate, cauline often 

 amplexicaul. Heads panicled corymbose racemose or sub-spicate, 

 homogamous, fls. all ligvilate. Invol. usually narrow, bracts iTsually 

 few-seriate, not thickened in fruit, inner slender subequal, outer often 

 very short. Cypsele compressed or flattened, beaked, faces ribbed, the 

 middle rib often strongest, beak slender or short, dilated into an 

 entire or toothed pappiferous disc. Pappus copious, hairs very 

 slender, simple, persistent or separately deciduous, sometimes AA'ith a 

 minute outer ring. 



495 



