104. ACANTHACE.1^. [2-L. Justicia. 



2i. JUSTICIA, L. 



Shrubs or visually herbs with entire leaves and sessile or sub- 

 sessile small rarely mod. -sized flowers usually in spikes with con- 

 spicuous bracts and small bracteoles, rarely axillary or in dense 

 cymes without a terminal spike (and not in our area). Bracteoles 

 sometimes 0. Calyx 5- or 4-partite, segments narrow. Corolla 2-lipped 

 with tube equalling- or shorter than the limb ; upper lip 2-lobed or 

 subentire, lower 3-lobed, anterior lobe outermost in bud. Stamens 2, 

 filaments often dilated, hairy near the base ; anthers 2-celled, cells 

 round or oblong, more or less discrete, lower with a white spur. 

 Style filiform, stigma 2-fid. Ovules 2 in each cell. Capsule oval or 

 ellipsoid, sometimes with a long cylindrical seedless base. Seeds 

 ovoid more or less compressed, tubercular, scaly or glochidiate-hispid, 

 not with hygroscopic hairs. 



A. Calyx-segments 5, equal or nearly so :— 



1. Bracts broad, ovate or obovate : — 



Suffruticose, bracts ovate white, green-nerved . . 1. hefovica. 



Herb, bracts green, obovate, often ])ateiit . . . 2, glauca. 



2. Bracts narrow. Undershrub, bracts linear . . .3. gevdarusm. 



B. Calyx-segments 4, very rareh' a minute fifth present : — 



1. Glabrous or nearlj- so. Bracts and sepals Unear obtuse : — 

 Erect or ascending. Leaves linear or lanceolate, sub- 

 acute or subobtuse ........ 4. quinqi(fiangidarig. 



Diffuse. Leaves broadly elliptic or obovate, rounded . 5. pepluides. 



2. More or less hairy. Bracts and sepals usually lanceo- 



late, very acute : — 

 Spikes very slender, '1-*15" wide, hairs short . . .6. diffum. 

 Spikes stout, '4-'75" broad, often hirsute or hairy . . 7. simplex, 



1. J. betonica, L. Had-pat, K. 



Erect, suffruticose, usually with many striate stems 2-4 ft. high 

 from a perennial rootstock, ovate-lanceolate entire or somewhat 

 crenate-dentate leaves attaining 4-5" by Vlo", smaller upwards, 

 mostly acuminate both ends. Flowers small Avhite rose-spotted in 

 mostly terminal 1-3-nate spikes conspicuous from the closely imbri- 

 cate white green-veined ovate or narrowly ovate acute or mucronate 

 bracts ■b-&' long and bracteoles resembling the bracts. Capsule 

 •3-"5", stout clavate pubescent. 



Mostly in rocky forests, especially towards ravines. Singbhum, common ! 

 Hazaribagh ! Palamau ! Puri ! Angul ! Fl., Fr. Nov.-March. 



Stems puberulous to subtomentose, swollen above the nodes, terete. Leaves 

 glabrous or pubescent both sides, sec. n. 6-8 fine raised. Petiole of lower larger 

 leaves -b-lb", of uppermost 0. Spikes often panicled 2-6" long, bracts with the 

 sec. n. meeting in an intramarginal one. Calj'x "25", sepals subulate or linear- 

 lanceolate, pubescent. Corolla hairy, upper lip '2", lower •4" broad. Anthers long- 

 spurred (in Angul and in Puri specimens). Seeds 2-4 with a corrugated or rugose 

 testa. 



The plant is used as a cure for diarrhoea. 



Var. a, Yillosa, Clarke. 



Stems and leaves very hairy or tomentose but scarcely worthy of 

 varietal rank. Clarke says " fiowers salmon-coloured," but they only 

 have pink or buff markings where I have seen them. 



Singbhum, frequent ! Parasnath ! 



45 691 



