Lactuca.'] lxxviii. composite!. (J. D. Hooker.) 407 



Central and Eastern Himalaya; Nipal, Wallich, Sikkim; ait. 6-12,000 ft., 

 J, D. H., &c. — DiSTBiB. Java, Sumatra. 



8tem 2-6 ft., sometimes very stout at the base. Leaves 3-4 in., membranous, 

 terminal lobe of the loTver 2-4 by 2-24 in-i l^^se truncate hastate cordate or suddenly . 

 narrowed into the very slender petiole, not aurioled ; leaves of young specimens 

 sometimes pinnatifid throughout. Panicles often very large, 1-2 ft. long and almost 

 as broad ; inner invol. bracts with often spathulate tips, outer very short. . Achenes 

 1 in., brown, ribs often obscure; pappus ^ in., deciduous,, outer very obscure. — The 

 absence of this in the Khasia Mts. is remarkable, if, as I suppose, it is identical with 

 the Malay Isld. plant. 



12. Ii. rapunculoides, Clarhe Comp. Ind. 268 : glabrous or sparsely 

 setose above, erect, simple or paniculately branched above, leafy, lower leaves 

 long-petioled hastate cordate or deltoid ■with margins incurved entire or variously 

 toothed, upper middle -with broadly veinged petioles sagittately auricled at the 

 base, uppermost subsessile often lanceolate, heads very narrow ^-J in. 6-8-fld. 

 drooping, outer invol. bracts very small, inner few very narrow with dilated 

 tips, achenes very slender elongate-fusiform slightly compressed smooth striate 

 narrowed into a brown beak Mulgedium rapunculoides, DC. Prodr. vii. 249. 



Western Himalaya ; alt. 9-12,000 ft., Kashmir and Lahul, Thomson, Clarice ; 

 Kumaon, Straoh. ^ Winterb. ; Nipal, Wallioh. 



A sTnaller plant (2-3 ft.) than L. graciliflora, with longer and sometimes sparsely - 

 hispid heads of the same shape which. have also like it often spathulate tips, but 

 diifering in the leaves, which are never pinnate or pinnatifid, but often hastate, with 

 wide spreading lateral and a produced mid-lobe, and very different achenes, ^ in. long, 

 very narrow, slightly compressed, with rounded sides and faces, all equally striated, 

 ribs slender ; pappvis very caducous, dirty white, rather shorter' than the achenes. — 

 This has the achenes of a Prenanthes, but is too closely allied to L. graciliflora to be 

 dissociated from it. 



13. Ii. decipiens, ClarJce Comp. Ind. 266 ; glabrous, stem tall panicu- 

 lately branched above, lower leaves (rarely entire) runcinate-pinnatifid with a 

 broad hastate terminal lobe coarsely toothed, cauline with long winged petioles 

 dilated and auricled at the base, uppermost lanceolate, heads | in. long 6-8-fl.d. 

 cylindric peduncled glabrous drooping, outer invol. bracts oblong-ovate obtuse 

 half the length of the 5-6 linear-oblong inner which are glabrous or dorsally 

 setose, achenes oblanceolate naiTowed into a short dark beat smooth faces 

 ribbed. Mulgedium decipiens, Serb. Ind. Or. H.f.SrT. 



Western Himalaya; Kashmir and Eras, alt. 8-10,000 ft., Thomson, Clarice. 



Very similar to L. rapunculoides, but the he.ads are larger, and the ' outer invol. 

 bracts much longer, the lower leaves are not hastate nor the upper sagittately auricled ; 

 and the achenes are very diiferent. Lignles blue. Achenes ^ to nearly j in. long, com- 

 pressed, rather suddenly contracted into the beak, which is j the length of the body, 

 dorsal face with many equal ribs, ventral with a strong midrib and lateral fainter 

 ones ; pappus ^ in., dirty white. 



"Var. maltifida; stem l-lj ft., leaves crowded at the base of the stem all pinna- 

 tjfid with narrow coarsely toothed and, cut lobes, heads larger, achenes nearly -J in.- 

 with rather longer beaks, the upper half of which is white. — Kashmir, Thomson, 

 Clarice. 



14. Ii. liastata, DC. Prodr. vii. 139 ; glabrous pubescent or hispidly 

 haii-y above, tall, erect, often very robust, paniculately branched above, leaves 

 large polymorphous usually pinnatifid or pinnate with a hastate deltoid or ovate 

 coarsely toothed acuminate terminal lobe, pinnules or lobes few or many, petiole 

 slender and simple or dilated at the base or winged lobulate and auricled, heads 

 J in. long subcampanulate 10-30-fld., peduncles nodding, outer invol. bracts 

 ablong-ovate half aa- long as ttie 8-10 linear-oblong glabrous or setose ' inner, 

 achenes obovate or elliptic flat, beak slender pale equalling the body, Clarhe 



