111. POLYGONAGEM. [1. Polygonum. 



tepals broadly elliptic or orate. Peduncles and rhachis glabrous, somewhat 

 angular. Stamens 8. St^'le deeply 3-fid with capitellate stigmas. 



12. P. hyropiper, L. 



Stems decumbent at base and ascending, more rarely quite erect, 

 12-20", glabrous, very slender above, nodes below swollen. Leaves 

 linear-lanceolate, copiously gland-dotted, \o-Z2b", glabrous or 

 scabrous on margin, subsessile. Stipules glabrous, with few and 

 usually deciduous bristles mostly under -l" long. Flowers pink in 

 rather lax, very slender or filiform racemes which are erect, flexuous, 

 or decurved. Bracts glabrous, gland-dotted or not, truncate with 

 very small, often deciduous cilia, or eciliate. Pedicels mostly exserted 

 to the length of the flower. Perianth glandular. Styles sometimes 

 2 only. Nut usually trigonous, opaque, granulate, occasional ones 

 flat. 



Wet places and streams. Purneah ! Damodar River (between Rauchi and 

 Hazaribagh), itttrz! Ranchi ! Singbhum ! Fl., Fr. May-Dec. 



13. P. praetermissum, Hook, f. 



A rather delicate species with creeping stems and erect stems up 

 to 10" high, glabrous or with reflexed bristles especially neai the nodes, 

 oblong or linear-oblong or linear leaves r5-4" long, sagittate or hastate 

 at base with large obtuse lobes or auricles, beneath often purplish 

 and quite glabrous or with a few deciduous reflexed hairs on midrib, 

 margin minutely ciliate. Petiole ■2-V smooth or with bristles. 

 Stipules narrow with thin deciduous hairs, eciliate at apex. Racemes 

 almost capillary, once or twice bifurcate, 2-4" long, glabrous or some- 

 what glandular. Flowers very few at the ends of the branches, 

 distant, bracts only 3-5, glabrous except at the shortly ciliate tips, -1". 



In wet ditches, N. Purneah ! Fl. Dec. -Jan. Fr. not seen in our specimens, said 

 to be globosely 3-gonous. 



The very slender characteristic forked nearlj' glabrous axillary racemes with 

 few distant flowers bring this under P. prcetermissum in spite of the greater 

 hairiness than in the tj^pe. The Sikkim specimens in the Cal. Herb, have often 

 densely glandular inflorescences. 



14. P. pedunculare, Wall. 



A weak herb wdth stems decumbent at base, 2-3 ft. high, angled 

 and hispid above with short retrorse bristles or prickles or unarmed. 

 Leaves linear, or somewhat lanceolate-linear, acute or acuminate, 

 2-4" long by •2--4" broad, glabrous with hispidulous or scabrid 

 margins, contracted into a very short petiole •05--25" long. Stipules 

 long tubular with dilated very oblique shortly ciliate mouth. Flowers 

 small white in heads or oblong racemes •15--4" long, the heads in 

 2-chotomous lax panicles with glandular-hispid peduncles and scarious 

 stipuliform Iracts at the forks Flowers 1 (or more ?) exserted from 

 the lanceolate acuminate, nerved and pectinately ciliate bracts 

 which are -15" long or basal ones up to '2" long. Perianth broadly 

 campanulate •1--12" long with rounded tepals. Stamens 5 (-3). 

 Style 2-fid as long as the ovary. Nut thickly biconvex, orbicular or 

 broadei than long, -OT-'OS" broad, brown, not polished, 



779 



