11. IpoMffiA.] 96. CONVOLVULACE.E. 



nearly glabrous. Flowers Avhite I'S" diam. on 1- or usually 2-fld. 

 peduncles -75-2" long. Capsule -o-'lo", ovoid, subacute, glabrous and 

 shining, 2-4-valved. 



In open jungles. Singbbum, frequent ! Eancbi ! Hazaribagb. Clarke ! Man- 

 bbum, ^«;t! Bonai ! FL. Fr. Aug.-Oct. 



Leaves witb lower petioles 2". upper petioles '2o-"5'', glabrous or with spreading 

 bairs. Leaflets sessile or subsessile, tapering at tbe base, glabrous or hairy on the 

 nerves beneath, sometimes linear-lanceolate. Bracts linear persistent. Sepals 

 "3-*4" long, elliptic or ell.-oblong, brownish with membranous margins, sometimes 

 ■5" in fruit, two inner the larger. Corolla 1'5" long, funnel-shaped, bands several- 

 nerved. Anthers curved. Seeds glabrous, shining, Avith the apex crested. 



25. I. hederacea, Jacq. Syn. Convolvukis hederaceus, L. ; Ipomea 

 nil. Roth. ; Pharbitis nil and P. hederacea, Cliois. 



A hairy twiner Avith retrorsely hirsute stems, ovate cordate 

 3-lobed leaves 3-5" long, and handsome bright-blue or rose-coloured 

 flowers l*5-2" long Avith very long sepals, subumbellate on 1-5-fld. 

 peduncles. 



Common in hedges near villages in Chota Nagpur! Fl. Aug.-Nov. Fr. Oct.- 

 Dec. 



Leaves thinly hairy, lobes broadly ovate or oblong very acuminate. Petioles 

 l'5-4.". Peduncles hirsute with retlex'ed hairs 1-3", rarely 4", bracts linear. Sepals 

 linear-lanceolate '7-1" long, hairy below, not enlarged in fruit. Anthers not 

 twisted. Ca])sule subglobose "3", glabrous. Seeds glabrous. 



The seeds are said to be eaten. 



26. I. digitata, L. Syn. I. paniculata, L.; Convolvulus paniculatus, 

 L. ; Bhumikumra, Beng. ; Bilai kand, H. 



An extensive twiner from a tuberous root with glabrous stems and 

 sub-orbicular deeply 5-7-palmately lobed leaves 3-7" diam. with 

 elliptic or lanceolate or spathulate lobes and widely cordate base. 

 Flowers 15 -2-5''' widely campanulate, pink-purple (dark reddish- 

 purple, Roxh.), many in a long-peduncled dense corymbose cyme. 

 Ovary and capsule 4-celled, 4-valved with closely cottony or woolly 

 seeds. 



Purneah! Fl., Fr. r.s. Deciduous Dec. -Jan. 



Leaves glabrous, usually lobed beyond the middle or nearly to base, bluntly 

 acuminate, nerves about .5-7 basal and two higher up. The leaf much resembles 

 that of Modeaca, but lacks the large glandular areas. Petioles 2-.5". Peduncles 

 about as long as the petioles or G-10". Pedicels •25-".5". Bracts minute deciduous. 

 Fls. sub-umbellate. Sepals elliptic "lo-'o", wider in fruit and concave and rather 

 fleshy. Corolla with a narrow- tubular base scarcely exceeding calyx. Anthers 

 not twisted. Capsule ovoid 'i~'b" long. The wool on the seeds is sometimes 

 exserted from the capsule fissure. 



The tuberous roots are used in native medicine as tonic and lactagogue. The 

 plant is also sometimes cultivated for its flowers. 



27. I. batatas, iamfc. Uku-sangar, iiT. ; Sakakanda, if.; Kanda, Or.; 

 The Sweet Potato. 



A prostrate plant with milky juice and triangular or ovate usually 

 sharply and irregularly lobed leaves 2— i" long Avith more or less 

 cordate base and long stout petioles 2-8". FloAvers purple 2" long 

 and broad 2-several on long axillary peduncles with short pedicels 

 and very small bracts at the base of the pedicels. 



Cultivated in all districts, chiefly in sandy ground near rivers. Fl. about 

 .January, and as the tubers are usually lifted in" November to December the natives 

 often say that it does not flower. I have not seen the fruit. Native of America. 



602 



