OROBANCRACE&. 161 



LXXX.-OROBANCHACE^. 



Leafless brown, white or reddish root-parasites containing little 

 or no chlorophyll. Stem usually simple, stout or slender, scaly. 

 Flowers 2-sexual, irregular, solitary or in spikes or racemes. Calyx 

 spathaceous or 2-lipped, with 4 or 5 free or connate segments. 

 Corolla hypogynous, curved, usually distinctly 2-lipped, or some- 

 times with 5 subequal lobes ; upper lip often arohed, lower 3 fid.,, 

 throat often with 2 villous folds. Stamens didynamous, inserted 

 on the corrolla-tnbe ; anthers 1- or 2-celled ; cells frequently spurred 

 at the base, opening by slits or apical pores, one cell often imperfect. 

 Disk usually obscure. Ovary of 2 (rarely 3) carpels, 1 or (rarely) 

 2-celled ; ovules usually many, anatropous, on 2 (rarely 3) pairs or! 

 free or confluent parietal placentas which sometimes ultimately 

 reach the centre of the ovary. Fruit a capsule, usually 1-celled ; 

 valves 2, rarely 3. Seeds usually many, testa pitted or reticulated,, 

 albumen fleshy, embryo often undivided. Species about 150, in 

 temperate and tropical regions. 



Corolla-lobes broad, subequal : - 



Calyx spathaceous. anther-cells unequal . . 1. ^EGINETIA. 



Calyx tubular-campanulate, 5-lobed ; anther-cells equal 2. CISTANCHE. 

 Corolla 2-lipped, upper lip 2-lobed, lower 3-lobed . 3. OROBANCHE.. 



1. JEGINETIA, Linn.-, Fl. Brit, Ind. iv, 820. 



Leafless herbs with branched or simple naked or soaly scapes or 

 stems. Flowers few, large solitary or corymbose, bracteoles none.. 

 Calyx spathaceous, split in front nearly to the base. Corolla 

 broadly tubular, incurved, obscurely 2-lippe<i ; lobes 5, broad, 

 spreading, the 2 upper connate. Stamens didynamous, included ; 

 anthers meeting iu pairs, each with 1 perfect cell adnate to the 

 filament and not spurred at the base, the other cell absent from the 

 upper pair, the absent cell in the lower pair represented by an empty 

 clavate and deflexed spur. Ovary 1-celled ; placentas large, 2- or 

 more-lobed, filling the cavity ; ovules very many, covering the 

 whole placental surface ; style slender ; stigma large, peltate. 

 Fruit a 2-valved capsule. Seeds many, minute, pitted. Species 3 

 in Tropical and Sub-tropical Asia. 



Scape slender, naked, corolla purple, placentas multi- 

 fied . 1. J. indica. 



Soape, short, stout, bracteate; corolla-tube yellow, 

 mouth blue, placentas 2 lamellate . 2. M. ptduncu- 



