93. HY DROPHYLLACEM. [1. Hydrolea. 



petals and yellow centres, borne in fascicles at the nodes, bvit only 1 

 or 2 flowering at a time. 



Very common in tanks and backwaters, in all districts! Fl. June-Sept. 



Stems numerous from a rhizome, long and slender, lookino' like long petioles 

 were it not that they bear the inflorescence about half or three-ciuarters of an inch 

 below the leaf. Leaf rather fleshy, orbicular or orb. -oblong, deeply cordate with 

 an acute sinus. 3-8'' diam., beneath verrucose, above smooth, palmately-nerved, 

 margin sinuate. Flowers in a dense sessile umbel on long pedicels which are 

 deflexed after flowering. Sepals 6-7, narrow, green. Petals often 6, linear-oblong 

 ^vith entire recurved margins, Ijeautifully densely flmbriate on the surface with 

 long white hairs. St. 5-7. Ovary with 3 parietal placenta) and 3-lamellate stigma 

 (sometimes 2, ?). 



2. L. cristatum, Griseh. 



Closely resembling the last, but smaller in all its parts. Stems 

 long filiform, leaves floating elliptic to orbicular 2-3" diam. Flowers 

 borne on slender pedicels which rise one by one above the water to 

 open and the pedicels then recurved. Corolla -S-'TS" diam., petals 

 not hairy, but Avith a median vertical lamella, base yellow, throat 

 with a ring of hairs. 

 In similar places to Z. indicam, and flowering with it ! 



FAM. 93. HYDROPHYLLACE^. 



Herbs Avithout milky juice, sometimes glandular-hairy. Leaves 

 simple or pinnate, exstipulate, alternate. Inflorescence various. 

 Flowers regular, usually 5-merous. Sepals shortly connate at base, 

 imbricate. Corolla usually rotate, lobes imbricate in bud. Stamens 

 inserted near base of corolla, alternate with the petals, equal or not, 

 filaments often hairy or dilated below. Anthers linear or sagittate 

 versatile. Disc seldom developed. Ovary superior with broad base, 

 2-carpellary, 1-2-celled, often with a partial septvim, ]ilacent8e 2 in 

 each cell axile or at the margins of a partial septum. Styles 1-2, if 

 one then more or less divided. Stigmas usually capitate. Ovules in 

 each carpel many to 2, sessile or pendulous, anatropous or amphi- 

 tropous, micropyle superior and exterior. Fruit capsular, loculicidally 

 2-valved, so that half the septum with the placentae remain in the 

 middle of each valve or valves separating from the septum. Seeds 

 as many as the ovules or fewer, albuminous. Embryo small straight 

 axile. 



1. HYDROLEA, L. 



Leaves simple entire. Flowers in short terminal panicled racemes 

 or cymes. Corolla sub-rotate. Ovary completely 2-celled, styles 

 distinct with capitate stigmas. Ovules very many. Capsule septi- 

 fragal, 2-valved or wall irregularly breaking up. 



1. H. zeylanica, VaM. 



An erect or diffuse herb 1-2 ft., often succulent, glabrous below. 

 Lower leaves 4" by 1", lanceolate, acuminate, upper gradually smaller 

 and bracteate. Inflorescence cymose at the ends of short lateral 

 branches and terminal, panicled by the suppression of the leaves. 

 Flowers blue, '4" diam. Capsule ovoid-ellipsoid, "IT" long, septifragal. 



571 



