104. ACANTHACE^. [16. Barleria. 



5. B. cristata, L. Syn. B. ciliata, Roxh. ; Jati, Beng. ; Eaila baha, 



S.; Ban-siriali (Bonai); Ban-patoli, Or. 

 An erect or diffuse undershrub 1-3 ft. high with elliptic to oblong- 

 lanceolate leaves 2-55" long and bright-rose-coloured or sometimes- 

 white flowers usually borne in great profusion, solitary or paired in 

 the leaf axils or forming dense capitate spikes on the branchlets. 

 Bracts foliaceous or 0. Bracteoles -b", linear or linear-oblanceolate 

 shorter than or equalling the large elliptic or rhomboid shortly 

 pectinately-toothed outer sepals, which are -75-1" long and strongly 

 nerved. Corolla-tube lb" long, sometimes limb sub-2-lipped, the 

 iipper lip with 4 lobes, the lower with one •5--75" long. Capsule 

 •b~6", glabrous shining compressed, without a solid beak. 



Hills of N. Champaraii ! Gaya Ghats ! Santal Parg-. ! Very common throughout 

 Chota Nagpur on rocky hills ! Bonai, Cooper ! Puri, on the dryer hills_! bam- 

 balpur! Kalahandi ! It is often cultivated in gardens. Fl. Sept.-Xov. Fr, Oct.- 



Stems sub-terete strigose. L. sub-sessile, sub-acuminate both ends, thinly strigose 

 on the nerves, both sides sometimes also with fulvous hairs, sec. n. 4-6. Bracts 

 (leaves) and bracteoles often deciduous in fruit, bracteoles about -5" or sometimea 

 •5o--7" in the same plant, strigosely-hairy. Sepals scarious in ripe fruit, outer 

 very venose, the spinulose teeth tipped by a hair, inner very small linear. Imper- 

 fect stamens 2. Seeds 2 in each cell, one at base and one near middle, sub-orbicular, 

 •15" diam. „. , i ^ v.- u 



The colour of the flowers is quite different to that of the Himalayan plant, which 

 has purple-blue corolla. „ ^ , 



A very variable plant. The Linnean type is rather fragmentary. It has 

 ell.-obovate or oblong leaves only 2" long (but only the upper ones are present), 

 hairy-pubescent beneath, acute from an obtu.^e tip or shortly cuspidate. Bracts 

 long-spinose-ciliate, hairy. Fls. Vo", apparently blue. 



Var. albida. Stems and leaves beneath white. L. narrow oblong or oblong- 

 lanceolate, more hairy and more lineolate. base obtuse, petiole very short. Fls.. 

 mostly 2 to each bract. Corolla pure white glandular-pubescent. 



Neterhat. Elev. 3000 ft. ! Fl. Oct. 



6. B. dichotoma, Roxh. ? 



A shrub 4-6 ft. high Avith strigose and pubescent branches more 

 distinctly quadrilateral than in the last species. Leaves oblong, 

 tapering somewhat at base and acuminate, 3-5" long, setulose above 

 and strigose on the nerves beneath. Petioles -l-'S". Flowers bright 

 rose-coloured like those of B. cristata, but axillary spikes peduncled 

 and pairs of flowers usually on a short stalk in the axil of the leafy 

 bracts, one or both bearing each a proper linear bract in addition to 

 the two bracteoles. Outer sepals white between the nerves, -T-'S", 

 with the spinose-teeth up to 1" long, dorsally with numerous stalked 

 glands. Corolla-tube 1-1 3" glandular-puberulous. 



In gardens on the Eanchi Plateau, sometimes forming a good hedge as at 

 Government House and very handsome in flower. Fl. Oct. 



Each leaf of the spike may bear one or two flowers on a short stalk on the same 

 inflorescence. If two flowers each has a linear bract '5" long and two bracteoles, or 

 sometimes only one bears the proper bract ; in a few cases it is the bracteoles which 

 fail. 



I am unable to determine satisfactorily this very handsome species, l)ut it 

 appears to agree well with Soxbiirgli'» description of dichotoma except that the 

 flowers of his plant were white. Roxburgh's plant has been reduced to B. crhtata,. 

 but this is quite distinct, and, like his plant, its native country is unknown. 



683 



