543 



Vernac, 7iames.—E\ve Aje (Lagos, Dennett); Ewe Owo 

 (Lagos, Daivodu); Alhaji (Hausa, Dalziel). 



All Tropical Africa, Asia and Pliilippines. . . , 

 Used by natives as spinach. East Africa (Speke & Grant, 

 Herb. Kew), leafy shoots of the young plant used in curry and 

 the whole plant occasionally used as a famine food in India 

 (Hooper, Agric. Ledger, No. 6, 1904, p. 63). 



A shrub ; white flower, Lagos (Dennett, Herb. Kew),. grows 

 shrub-hke over low huts, covering them Hke ivy, flowers small 

 white or mould colour, found near water and on ground once 

 cultivated. East Africa (Speke & Grant, Herb. Kew); villous 



or pubescent, 1-4 ft. high, branches often long curved (Fl. 

 Trop. Afr. I.e.). 



The flowering tops are officinal and the roots are used in the 

 treatment of headache on the Malabar Coast and the woolly 

 spikes are used for stuffing pillows in Sind (Watt, Diet. Econ. 

 Prod. India). [In the Museum at Kew there is a sample of 

 the flowers of " Toorf " {A. tomentosa, Lam.) stated to be used 

 for stuffing cushions, mattresses, &c., in Jedda]. 



AciiYRA^TTHES, Linn. 



Achyranthes 



Air 



I II .—Hheede , Hort. Mai. x. t. 78; Rumpf, Amb. vi. t. 12, 



1. 1 ; Wight, Ic. i:*!. Ind. or. v. t. 1777 ; Engl. Bot. Jahrb. 

 1901-02, t. 1, £F. G-J; Engl. & Prantl, Pflan. iii. part 1a, f. 47, 

 D, E ; Marloth, Fl. S. Afr. i. t. 45, f. F. 



Vernac. names. — Hakorin machiji (Hausa, Dalziel) ; Aboro 

 (Yoruba, Millson) ; Erg-el-asda (Arabic, Muriel) ; Karalsebo 

 (Ceylon, Waring, Moloney). ^The Prickly Chaff-flow^er. 



Upper and Lower Guinea, and widely distributed in the 

 tropical parts of the Old World ; and in South Australia, New 



Queensland 



diuretic 



alkah 



the whole 



plant in India (Watt, Diet. Econ. Prod. India). The fresh root 



is ground and used as a, remedy for scorpion stings, India 



(Bona via, Mus. Kew) ; portions of the branches are used as 



toothbrushes in the Hadramaut, Arabia (Lunt, Mus. Kew) and 



specimens have been sent from Malacca, sold in Aden for the 



same purpose and said to come from Somahland (Derrv, Mus 

 Kew) 



much branched weed 4-5 



Kew), an erect, haiiy herb, 1-4 ft. high (Fl. Trop. Afr 

 3-4 ft. high, up to 3,000 ft. altitude, all over India, a 

 weed in gardens (Watt, I.e.). 



Herb 



troublesome 



■ - Alteen ANTHERA , Forsk. 



Altemauther^ achyranthoides, Forsk. ; Fl. Trop. Afr. VI. 



Sect, 1, p; 73. 



