30 cxix. roLYGOXACE/E. (J. D. Hooker.) [Polygonum. 



racemes; bracts tubular. Pe rian tli 4-5-partite. Stamens 5-8,^ alternating 

 with glands. Styles 2-3, short, stigmas capitate. Nut orbicular, com- 

 pressed ; embryo slender, cotyledons narrow incumbent. 



12. P. orientale, Linn. ; Meissn. Monog. Polyg. 53, t. 1, f. 30-35, 

 and t. 3, and in DC. Prodr. xiv. 1. 123 ; tall, branched, softly pubescent or 

 silkily villous, leaves long-petioled ovate or ovate-cordate acuminate, 

 stipules short strigose and ciliate, racemes cylindric laxly panicled, bracts 

 close 3-6-fld. Sot. Mag. t. 213; Gcertn. Fruct. ii. t. 119, f. 5; Miquel Fl. 

 Ind. JBat. i. 1005 ; Sab. in Trans. Linn. Soc. xviii. 99. P. altissimum, 

 Mcenck. Meth. 630. P. amcenum, SI. Sijd. 531. P. pilosum, Rpxb. Sort. 

 Seng. 20, and Fl. Ind. ii. 286 ; Wall. Cat. 1710, excl. C. P. cochin chinense, 

 Meissn. Monog. Polyg. 55. P. torquatum, De Sruyn in PI. JungJi. 303. 

 Lagunea cochinchinensis, Lour. Fl. Cock. i. 271. Rheede Hort. Mai. xii. 

 t. 76. 



Wet places from ASSAM and SILHET westwards to OUDE and JAMTT; ascending 

 the Himalaya to 5000 ft. DISTKIB. Siam, Java, Borneo, China, Japan, Turkestan 

 (often cultivated). 



A branching annual, 3-10 ft. ; branches hollow. Leaves 6-9 by 2-5 in., grey with 

 . hairs ; nerves very numerous ; petiole 1-4 in. ; stipules short, hirsute, truncate, 

 mouth membranous or dilated herbaceous and recurved. Hacemes 3-5 in., on long 

 stout strict peduncles and pedicels, erect or cernuous; bracts crowded strigosely 

 tomentose and ciliate ; flowers large, white red or green. Stamens 7-8, included. 

 Styles connate below, stigmas capitellate. Nuts f in. diam., orbicular, flattened with 

 rounded margins and rather concave faces, black, shiny, pericarp very thick. Coty- 

 ledons incumbent. Roxburgh remarks that the ends of the branches when moistened 

 become thickly glutinous. 



Var. glabrata; very sparsely pubescent or glabrate, petiole narrowly winged. 

 Kashmir, Thomson ; Saharunpore Bot. Garden, Royle, Falconer. 



Var. parvifolia ; sparingly pubescent, leaves 2-3 J in. elliptic acuminate membra- 

 nous, petiole winged, stipules very short, mouth herbaceous. Wall. Cat. 1709/2 

 (under P. tomentosum). Silhet, De Silva. I have seen no other specimen. A note 

 on the specimen says the shoots are eaten and have a sour taste. 



13. P. tomentosum, Willd. Sp. PL ii. 447; stem simple very stout 

 erect pubescent or ' glabrous, leaves 4-8 in. shortly petioled lanceolate 

 tiuely acuminate silky beneath rarely glabrate, stipules strigose truncate 

 mouth erect with rigid bristles half their length or less, racemes stoutly 

 peduncled panicled, bracts crowded hispid and ciliate. Meissn. in 

 DC. Prodr. xiv. 1. 124, excl. var. /3 ; Boxb. Hort. Seng. 29, and Fl. Ind. ii. 

 287 ; Miquel FL Ind. Sat. i. 1006 ; Wall. Cat. 1709, excl. B, E, G, H, and 

 part of D. P. orientale, Wall. Cat. 1710 C. P. ochreatum, Houtt. Pfl. 

 Syst. vi. 442, t. 49, f. 1. P. pulchrum, Slum$ Sijd. 530. 



In ditches, &c., from BENGAL, ASSAM and CACHAR, southwards to MALACCA ; and 

 from BOMBAY to MALABAE and CEYLON. DISTBIB. Java, Philippines, Trop. and S. 

 Africa. 



Stems one or more from a prostrate rooting annual stock, 2-4 ft., often as thick as 

 the finger. Leaves 1-1| in. diam., usually pubescent or subsilky above; petiole 

 rarely % in. ; stipules ^-1 in., membranous. Racemes 2-4 in., always erect, strict ; 

 bracts 6-8-fld. ; flowers large, white. Stamens 7-8. Nut large, ^ in. diam., orbi- 

 cular flattened with rounded margin and convex faces ; pericarp very thick, crusta- 

 ceous, black, shining ; cotyledons incumbent. This is apt to be confounded with 

 P. barbatum. Meissner quotes Wall. Cat. 1708 A, aud 1708 G, I, for this, but the 

 first and last are certainly barbatum, and only one piece of G appears to be 

 tomentosum. 



14. P. limbatum, Meissn. in DC. Prodr. xiv. 1. 123 ; stem simple 



