Tribe : Stapelieae Decne. In DC. Prodr. 8:606.1644; Bruyna L Paul Forster in Taxon 40(3) :381-391. 1991. Type Genus : Stape 1 ia L. = Ceropeg1eae Benth. In Benth. & Hook.f. Gen. PI. 2 ;738. 1676. BRACHYSTELMA R. Br. in Bot. Mag. t. 2343.1822; Benth. L Hook.f. Gen. PI. 2j7Si.l876; Hook. f. FI. Brit. India 4:64.1883. Dwarf, erect or twining herbs with an almost globose tuber bearing one or very few sterna. Leaves opposite, sessile or almost sessile, glabrous. Flowers i-3 in penduneled or almost sessile umbel-llke cymes. Peduncle and pedicels puberulous. Calyx flve-lobed. Corolla broadly campanulate or rotate, five-lobed, valvate. Corona staminal, double, attached to the starn1na1 -CO Iumn; outer consisting of five-deeply bifid segments exceeding the staminal column; inner consisting of five simple, oblong segments, rounded at apex, incumbent over stigma. Anthers without membranous appendage. Pollen masses solitary in each anther loculus, waxy, ascending, with pellucid margin. Stigma nearly flat, five-angled. Follicles linear, tapering to the apex. Seeds comose. Type species : Brachystelma tube rosum R.Br. 508 A genus consisting of more than 100 species, which are much in need of a revision, distributed from Africa to New Guinea, mostly in the drier parts of Africa, south of the equator. It is represented by one species in Ceylon, was recently discovered during the Flora Projects in Burma, Thailand, Philippines, and New Guinea. In India it is represented by 13 species. Map - 24 «. 25 The collection of the species belonging to this genus in our herbaria is very very poor. Hence detailed study has not been done. This genus needs revision after a thorough, fresh collection. Key to the spec i es 1. S tem twining : 2. Flowers solitary; corolla ca 3,5 cm long,lobes not connate at tips, white villous within. ^ volublIe 2. Flowers three; corolla c^ 2.5 cm long, lobes connate at tips, glabrous. •.. B.brevitubulatun 1. Stem erect : 3. Corona without any processes, shortly toothed : 4. Flowers solitary; corolla deeply 5 lobed, lobes lanceolate, subobtuse. B. pauc i f1orum 4 . Flowers 3~5; corolla lobes linear, acute. B. g I abruai 509 MAP-24 MAP-25 3, Corona with five subulate processes, undulate or toothed : 5. Corolla glabrous. ... B.c i1 latum 5. Corolla puberulous within : 6 . Leaves minute, subulate; flowers sessile. ... B.IaevIgatum 6 , Leaves linear to ovate-oblongj flower* not sessile : 7. Leaves ovate-oblong to ovate-IanceoI ate, acum1nate. ... B.koIarens i8 7. Leaves filiform or linear to lanceolate, acute : 8 . Corolla lobes tapering, filiform, connate or twisted at apex ; 9. Plants up to 15 cm high; leaves upto 1 cm broad; flowers 1-2 . ... B.eduI Is 9. Plants up to 30 cm high; leaves upto 2.5 cm broad;f1owers usually four. ... B.ma1wanengIs 0. Corolla lobes free at apex, lobes not broad at base : 10. Corolla lobes linear; flowers sessile or subsesslle : 510 11. Flowers 3-5; Corolla lobes 3 tnm long, with purple hairs within. B. niacul atum 11. Flowers 5 or more; Corolla lobes 9-10 mm long, with white villous within. ... B.rangachar i 1 10. Corolla lobes not linear; flowers penduncled ; 12. Corolla lobes narrowly triangular with ornamenta­ tions, hairs on lobes. ... B.bourneae 12. Corolla lobes lanceolate, without ornamentations, glabr­ ous . ... B.e 1enaduena i 8 1. B. bourneae Gamble in Kew Bull. 1922.120.1922 et FI. Pres. Madras 2:599 (5:651.1923) 1957 (Rep.Ed.)j Henry §1. al. in J. Bombay nat. Hist. Soc. 75(3)»691.1978; Henry e_t FI. Tamil Nadu Analysis 2:80.1987. Type ; India ; South India : Madura districts Pulnay hills, on Kodaikanal Ghat and in Perumal and vilpatti Valley, east slope, May 1898 and June 1899, Sir A.G. and Lady Bourne. 1020, 2751, 2752.(Kew.photo !) 511 The fresh collection of this species is not available at MH or CAL, only type photo seen. Therefore, translation of original description as given by Gamble is given here. Photoplata - 7 *Herbs erect, tuberous, tubers fusiform, 3-4 mra in diam. leaves linear, 7-10 cm long, 2 mm wide, opposite. Flowers in cymes, axillary, sessile, 3-flowered{ pedicels filiform, 5-15 mm long; braoteols minute. Calyx 5-partite, lobes 5, linear, glabrous, 2 mm long. Corolla tube short, rotate, white, lobes triangular- lanceolate, torti apex, c^ 1 cm long, pi Iose-purpIe. Corona annular, lobes subulate, five, 1 mm long, inflexed. Stamens obtuse, pollinia globose, pellucid. Style apex pentagonal.* FI. S< Fr . : May-J une Distrib. : Tamil Nadu (endemic). 2. B. brevitubulatuB (Bedd.) Gamble, FI. Pres. Madras (5:852.1923) 2:599.1957 (Rep.Ed.); Henry et al. in J. Bombay nat. Hist. Soc. 75 ( 3 ) : 6 91. 1978 ; Henry e^ ai_. FI. Tamil Nadu Analysis 2:80.1987. Ceropeg ia brev t tubulata Beddome, Ic. PI. Ind. Or. t. 174.1839. B rachys te1ma beddome i Hook. f. FI. Brit. India 4 :66.1883. 512 Type ( hyaore, Vellore hills, alt. 1000 ft. Beddow (Plate 174 of Bedddome, ic. PI. Ind. Or. t. 174.1039!) There is no specimen In MH and CAL. Therefora, description given by Gamble is is given below. Plato - 110 •A slender twining herb. Leaves linear, up to lO cm. long, c^ 1 cm broad. Peduncles short, 3-flowered, Coro I 1 a-1obes greenish-yellow outside, deep purple within, cohering at their tips, very slender, 1.5-2.5 cm long, glabrous. Corona undulately lobed. Follicles very slender, 10-13 cm long.* Illus. : Beddome, Ic. PI. Ind. Or. t. 174.1639. Distrib. : Tamil Nadu (endemic). 3. B. ciliatuTT) Arekal &( Ramakrishna in Curr. Sci. 50:145.1901; Kartikeyan h. Sharma in J. Bombay nat. Hist. Soc. 00( 1 ) :70. 1963; Sharma e^ FI. Karnataka 164.1964; Singh, FI. East. Karnataka 1:407.1966. Type : India : Karnataka; Kolar Dlat., Sonnipally, alt. 920 m, RamakrIshna. 1311A (Holotype, CAL !). Vern.Name : Tel. : Potha Jougu Niraatayalu. 513 LATE-n o BrachysteIma brevitubulatum (Bedd.) Gamble Plate - 111 Erect, 6-40 cm tall. Root tuberous; tuber ovate to discoid, brownish, 2-4 cm in diam., fleshy. Stem unbranched to sparsely branched, puberuloa, aerial part purplish, with pale, opposite, deltoid leaf scales, up to 2 ram long} leaf scars prominent. Latex watery. Leaves opposite, decussate, sessile or subsessils, lamina 20-60 X 1-2 mm, linear to Iinear-1anceoI ate, acuminate at apex, puberulous along midrib beneath, narrowly grooved above. Flowers in axillary, sessile umbels, 2-4 flowered, drooping; pedicels filiform, 3.5-20 mm long and c^ 0,4 mm in diam., puberulous; bracts c^ 1.5 mn long; bracteoles c^ 1 mm long, linear, puberulent without. Calyx five-lobed, divided up to base, lobes ca 1 X 0.5 mm, ovate, apex acuminate, margin minutely ciliate, pubescent without, glabrous within. Corolla reflexad, lobes five, united up to c^ 1 mm, lobes c^ 2 X 1 mm, ovate-oblong, apex acute, incurved, margin clliate; cilia 1-1.5 mm long, elongate. Corona stamlnal, biseriate, glabrous, adnate to the base of stamlnal column; outer cupular, 0.75 mm high and c^ 2 mm across, with five bifid short orbicular lobes; inner arising from inner side of outer corona, lobes five, broad, ca 0.5 X 0.5 mm, ovate, apex subacute, overlapping the anther lobes. Stamens five, ^ 1 um long; filaments united to form stamlnal column, c^ 0.5 514 I I K> I I I 1311 • TMR I © BrachyBtelma ciliatum Arekal 6 RamakrlsH J. Photograph, i 2. Floral V utf : a. Calyx; b. Corolla; I c. Corona; d. Stamens; e. Carpel. @ 3. Camera-lucida of pollinia. mm long; anthers 0.5-0.6 X 0.2 mm, oblong, broad, Incumbent over the stlgmatic head; polllnia five, pollen masses solitary In each anther cell, yellow, waxy, c^ 187.2 X 216 with pellucid layer attached by light-brown caudicles c^ 72 ^m long, c^ 57.2 )Jlm wide to a dark-brown corpuscle 150.4-172.8 long and ca 86.4 ju^m wide. Gynostegium c^ 1 mm long. Carpels two, ovary ca 0.75 X 0.3 mm, obIong-cyIindric, many-ovulad, free, glabrous; style very minute^0 .1-0 .2 mm long; stigma 0 .1- 0.2 mm long, 1 mm across, pentagonal. Follicles single or paired, erect and divergent, 5-9 cm long, glabrous; seeds many, c^ 7 X 2 mm, ovate-oblong, dark brown with light-brown margin; coma white, c^ 1.2 ca I ong. FI. 8t Fr. : June-Aug. Illus. ; Arekal & Raroakrishna in Curr. Sci. 50 : 145. 1981. Distrlb. : Karnataka (endemic). Chr. No. s 2n = 22 ( R-1332 ). Economic Importance ; Tuber is eaten by local people (Arekal tt Raxnakr ishna, 1981), Spec 1 men exam i ned Karnataka t Sonniapally, Kolar, Ramakr ishna, 1311 A. {Type) . 515 4. B. edul is ; Coll. S< Helens I . in Journ. Linn. Soc. 28:89, t. 14.18905 Yadav ei_ aj_. in J. Bombay nat. Hlat. Soc. 86(3):480 (1989) 1990. Type : Plate by Coll. 4< Helmsl. in J. Linn. Soo. 28;89, t. 14.1890 ! Vern.Name : Mar. j Singati galya. Plate - 112, Photoplate - 7 Erect, perennia IJdwarf herb, 5-12 cm high. Tubers subglobose or depressed, 2-10 cm in diam. Stem terete, branched or unbranched, 2-4 mm in diam., with short downwardly pointed hairs. Leaves opposite, sessile or subsessile, lamina 3-8 X 0.4-1 cm, linear or linear- lanceolate to narrowly elliptic, acute at apex, oiliata along margin. Flowers lateral, 1-2, bracteate; bracts subulate, 1-2 mm long; pedicels filiform, 3-9 mm long. Calyx five-lobed, divided up to base, 1.3-1.5 X 0.5 mn, linear, puberulous.