Order 8 1 . Convolvulacece. . 207 



Not in D. Konkan, Mahableshwar, and Guzerat ; growing over 

 trees or shrubs. Throughout India, common (H.). It is very like Gassy- 

 tha filiformis, forming tangled masses like string. * C. chinensis, 

 like the last, but smaller, styles 2 with capitate stigmas. Not in Z>. 

 Common in gardens, adhering to greens, etc. (6?.). 



Jacquemontia violacea, common in gardens, with small light blue 

 flowers, and heart-shaped leaves, preserves the name of the gifted 

 French botanist, who died at Colaba in December, 1832, from ex- 

 posure during his excursions in Salsette too soon after the close of the 

 rains. His remains were removed to France within the last ten years. 



There are probably many other species of this order to be found 

 in gardens. 



ORDEE 82. SOLANACE-32. Nightshades. 



Herbs, shrubs or soft-wooded trees, leaves alternate, without 

 stipules, flowers regular without bracts, calyx inferior, persis- 

 tent, generally 5-cleft, corolla more or less funnel-shaped, lobes 

 generally 5, stamens 5 on the corolla, anthers ovate or oblong, 

 fruit a capsule or berry, many- seeded. 



The leaves are described by if. as never opposite, but often in pairs 

 on the same side of the stem, an arrangement sometimes called gemi- 

 nate. Similarly the flowers are often not in the axilg, but above 

 them, and so-called extra-axillary. 



This is a large order, chiefly tropical, well known for its strong 

 narcotic properties, and therefore much used in medicine. There are 

 also a great number of food-producing plants, the most famous of 

 which is the potato, but most of these, as well as the medicinal species, 

 are poisonous in some of their parts. Tobacco may be looked on 

 as the champion of the narcotic species, as the potato is of the food 

 producers. 



As to external characteristics it does not seem possible to men- 

 tion any by which the species of the order may be easily distin- 

 guished j but two marks are very usual, 1 the pleating of the 

 corolla, as in many of the Convolvulaoeae, and 2 the union of the 

 long anthers at their apex, so as to form a cone surrounding the 

 pistil. This last feature, which is very noticeable, occurs only in 

 the genus Solanum, the flowers of all the species of which much re- 

 semble those of the potato, and as the Solanum s are not only the 

 main part of the order as regards W. India, but are said also to be 

 nearly twice as many as all the remaining species of the order all 

 over the world, these characteristics may be looked on as tolerably 

 general. 



1. SOLANUM. Corolla divided almost to the base, lobes 

 spreading, filaments short, anthers oblong, meeting at the points, 

 style columnar, berry round, or nearly so. 



2. PHYSALIS. Herbs, corolla bell-shaped, berry round within 

 the enlarged and inflated calyx. 



