LXXXII. POLYGONACE^l 
423 
glabrous ; stipules tubular, thinly hairy, fringed with the long 
points of the projecting nerves. Flowers pink or white, J in. 
long, in slender, erect or drooping racemes 1-2 in. long ; bracts 
tubular, fringed with long, needle-like points. Perianth 5-parted, 
sometimes glandular. Stamens 8. Styles 3, united for half their 
length. Nut 3-angled, smooth. 
Simla, Tara Devi, Narkunda, usually near water ; July-October. — N.W. 
Himalaya, 6000-10,000 ft. 
13. Polygonum Hydropiper, Linn. ; FI. Br. Ind. v. 39. Stems 
12-18 in., prostrate and rooting at the lower joints, then ascending, 
minutely glandular, glabrous, much-branched, swollen at the 
joints. Leaves shortly stalked, lanceolate, 2-3 in., narrowed 
to the base, glandular-dotted, midrib minutely hairy ; stipules 
tubular, about J in., inflated near the middle, glabrous or minutely 
hairy on the nerves, fringed with unequal bristles. Flowers pink 
or red, in slender, interrupted racemes 2-3 in. long, tips drooping ; 
bracts tubular, shortly fringed. Perianth 5-parted, glandular. 
Stamens usually 6. Styles 2 or 3, free nearly to the base. Nuts 
finely dotted, of the 2-styled flowers flattened and circular, of the 
3 -styled 3 -angled. 
Simla, Nal Dehra, usually near water ; July-October. — Throughout India, 
ascending to 7000 ft. — N. temperate and tropical regions, including Britain 
(Water-pepper). — Australia. 
The leaves have an acrid taste. 
14. Polygonum alatum, Buch.-Ham. ; FI. Br. Ind. v. 41. A 
very variable plant. Stems erect, glabrous or thinly hairy ; in the 
smaller forms 3-6 in., slender and unbranched ; in the larger 
6-18 in., robust and branched. Leaves glabrous, rarely hairy, 
gland-dotted, rough with minute points, ovate, obtuse or acute, 
abruptly or gradually narrowed into a winged stalk sometimes 
eared at its base ; in the smaller forms J-J in. ; in the larger 
1-3 in. ; stipules tubular, hairy or glandular towards the base, not 
fringed. Flowers white, purple or red, in heads in. diam,, 
usually with a sessile involucral leaf ; stalks glandular-hairy near 
the top ; bracts flat, glabrous. Perianth 4- or 5-parted. Stamens 
6 or 8. Styles 2 or 3, united to near the top. Nut quite enclosed 
in the perianth, 3-angled, or flattened and circular, minutely 
dotted. 
Simla, abundant in damp places ; January-December. — Hilly districts 
throughout India, up to 10,000 ft. — W. Asia, Africa. 
In the FI. Br. Ind. this species is divided into six varieties, four of which, 
viz. nepalense, parviflorum, Metzianum, and rigidulum, are found at Simla ; 
these are included in the above description. Their differences do not appear 
constant. 
15. Polygonum capitatum, Buch.-Ham. ; FI. Br. Ind. v. 44. 
Rootstock woody ; stems many, leafy, 6-10 in., trailing and root- 
ing, red-brown, hairy. Leaves in 2 rows, broadly ovate, £-l| in., 
