Cidlen w .] J/,l 7", I' -1 CK . l-y<;. 101 



12. Thespesia, Soland. 



Trees, clothed in the younger parts with peltate scales. Leaves 

 entire. Flowers solitary, axillary. Bracteoles 5, fugacious or 0. 

 Calyx truncate, entire. Petals 5, convolute. Staminal tube 

 toothed at the top, clothed except at the swollen base with the free 

 ends of the filaments. Ovary 5-celled ; ovules 2-3 in each cell ; 

 styles club-shaped, 5-furrowed. Fruit fleshy, very tardily dehiscent. 

 Seeds few, large, striate with lines of adpressed soft hairs. 



THESPESIA POPULNEA, Cav. ; F. B. I. i. 345 ; W. & A. 54 ; Wt. 

 Ic. t. 8 ; Bedd. Fl. t. 63. 



A fairly large evergreen tree with cordate entire long-petioled 



leaves 3-5 in. each way and long-peduncled flowers 2-3 in. 



across, the petals yellow fading to purplish pink. 



W. Coast near the sea-shore, very common and perhaps wild 



in S. Canara and Malabar, doubtfully so in Travancore, as also 



in-E. Coast Districts. Often planted in avenues near the coast, 



occasionally inland. The Indian Tulip or Portia tree. 



Wood dark red, hard and durable. Vern. Tarn. Puvarasam ; 



Tel. Gangareni ; Mar. Bhendi ; Kan. Huvarasi ; Mai. 



Porasu. 



13. Cullenia. 



Lofty trees covered in the younger parts with peltate scales. 

 Leaves oblong-lanceolate, penninerved, exstipulate. Flowers 

 fascicled on the old wood ; bracteoles 3-5, connate into a cylindric 

 tube. Calyx tubular, toothed. Petals 0. Anthers clustered at 

 intervals on the 5 branches of the staminal tube. Ovary 5-celled ; 

 ovules 2, superposed in each cell ; style elongate, woolly ; stigma 

 capitate. Fruit a large globose spiny ultimately 5-valved capsule, 

 containing a few large arillate exalbuminous seeds. 

 CULLENIA EXCELSA, Wt. Ic. t. 1761-2 ; F. B. I. i. 350. 



A tall buttressed tree with a long smooth white fluted trunk 



below the branches ; leaves simple, entire, 3-6 in. long ; 



flowers brownish white, 1-5 in. long ; fruit about 5 in. across, 



very spinous. 



W. Ghats from Coorg southwards, up to 4,000 ft., in evergreen 



forests. 



Wood pale brown, soft, not durable. Vern. Tain. Vedupla ; 



Mai. Kar aini. 



Modiola caroliniana, G. Don, is naturalized near Ootacamund. 



