8. A New Species of Tephrosia from Sind— Tephrosia 



Falciformis, Ramaswami. 



>f 



1 



(Published wifeh the permission of the Director, Botanical Survey 



of India. ) 



[With Plate L] 



Among the small collections of plants that were frequently 

 sent by Mr. R. S. Hole, Forest Botanist, Dehra Dun, in the 

 year 1913 to the Herbarium of the Royal Botanic Garden, 

 Sibpur, for determination, was a curiously fruiting species of 

 Tephrosia, found in the Mohibal dero forests, Nauhahro, in 

 the province of Sind. This could not be identified with any 

 species in the Calcutta Herbarium, and as the specimen con- 

 tained no flower, Mr. Hole was requested to collect from the 

 same source some specimens in flower. This he very kindly 

 did, and the result was that later in the year a fairly good 

 flowering specimen of this species was made available for study. 

 A careful examination of this, together with the fruit-material 

 already sent, revealed the existence of a hitherto undescribed 

 species of Tephrosia. Moreover, there is already a specimen 

 in the Herbarium, collected by Major Roberts in Rajputana, 

 which is identical with the present one, but which was 

 previously erroneously identified as Tephrosia purpurea, Pers. 

 The available material thus allowed of a fairly complete des- 

 cription of the species being drawn up, which is presented 

 below, with a short Latin diagnosis prefixed to it. One of the 

 duplicates of the specimen was sent to Kew, and there the 

 writer's determination was confirmed. 



Tephrosia (? Sectio nova) Falciformis, Ramas., sp. nov. 



Species distinctissima. leguminibus falcatis vel prope 

 eircinalibus. 



Herba perennis, rigida, 50-60 cm. alta. Folia imparipin- 

 nata, foliolo terminali lateralibus aliquanto majore, rhachi 

 adpresse sericea, basi inconspicue pulvinata, 5-08 cm. — 10*16 

 cm. longa; stipulae lineares, persistentes, 3 mm. longae; foliola 

 5-11, angusta, oblanceolata, basi cuneata, apice acuto sed 

 distincte mucronato, lateralia 2*5 cm. — 3-8 cm. longa, 4-2 mm. 



63 mm. lata, terminalia 31 cm.— 4*4 cm. longa, t>'3 mm. 

 9*5 mm. lata, albo-sericea ; nervi laterales 11-13, parallels 



