Polygala chinensis
Content
Description
Perennial, erect or ascending, mostly branched herb or undershrub up to 75 cm high, becoming woody at base, with a thickened root crown.
Leaves very variable, from broadly elliptic to lanceolate, 5-65 by 2-20 mm, shortly petioled, acute to mucronate, with slightly recurved margin, sparsely shortly hairy, few-nerved.
Flowers c. 4.5 mm long, white with green alae.
Sepals lanceolate, acuminate and with a long mucro, ciliate, alae asymmetric, 5-nerved.
Ovary orbicular, emarginate, ciliate;
Capsule shorter but somewhat wider than the alae, c. 4 by 4 mm, somewhat asymmetrically orbicular, notched, with a narrow distinctly ciliate wing.
Seed ovoid, at micropylar side with an unequally 3-lobed aril, black, hairy.
Distribution
Asia-Tropical: Borneo (Sarawak present); Jawa (Jawa present); Lesser Sunda Is. present; Malaya (Peninsular Malaysia present); New Guinea present; Philippines (Philippines present); Sumatera (Sumatera present); Thailand (Thailand present), Central and E. Java present, Flores present, Jolo present, Luzon present, Mindanao present, NE. India present, Penang present, S. China present, SE. Borneo present, Sumba present, Sumbawa present, W. Java present
NE. India to S. China, Thailand and Indochina; in Malesia: Malay Peninsula (Penang), Sumatra, Java (very common in W. Java, much less so in Central and E. Java), Lesser Sunda Islands (Sumbawa, Sumba, Flores), SE. Borneo and Sarawak, Philippines (Luzon, Jolo, Mindanao), New Guinea.
Notes
The name P. chinensis L. has been misapplied in nearly all cases, most often for P. polifolia, but also for P. triflora and P. glaucoides. Therefore, BURTT (1972) rejected the name for the present species, addressing it as P. glomerata. I cannot follow this illegal procedure.
For remarks on synonymy, see under 75. P. polifolia.
For remarks on synonymy, see under 75. P. polifolia.
Citation
K.SCH. & LAUT. 1905: Fl. Schutzgeb. Sudsee: 284
BURTT 1972 – In: Not. R. Bot. Gard. Edinb.: 403
WALP. 1842 – In: Rep.: 233
BACKER 1911: Schoolfl. Java: 78
BACKER & SLOOTEN 1924: Handb. Thee.: 158
DC. 1824 – In: Prod.: 326
MUKHERJEE 1961 – In: Bull. Bot. Soc. Beng.: 38
W. & A. 1834: Prod.: 236
ADEMA 1966: p. 270. – In: Blumea: f. 16
HASSK. 1863 – In: Miq., Ann. Mus. Bot. Lugd.-Bat. 1: 162
HASSK. 1863 – In: Miq., Ann. Mus. Bot. Lugd.-Bat. 1: 166
BACKER & BAKH.f. 1963 – In: Fl. Java: 198
Miq. 1858 – In: Fl. Ind. Bat.: 125
Roxb. 1832 – In: Fl. Ind., ed. Carey: 218
MATTHEW 1981 – In: Fl. Tamil. Carnatic: 65
CHODAT 1893 – In: Monogr.: 380
Merr. 1921: En. Born.: 324
LOUR. 1923 – In: En. Philip.: 353
Merr. 1935 – In: Trans. Am. Phil. Soc.: 228