CROSSANDRA

Crossandra Salisb., Parad. Lond. 1: t. 12. 1805.

54 species

Crossandra infundibuliformis

Crossandra infundibuliformis (L.) Nees in N. Wallach, Pl. Asiat. Rar. 3: 98. 1832; Maheshwari, Fl. Delhi 275. 1963; Malik & Ghafoor, Fl. Pak. @ eFloras.org p. 65; Flora Nicaragua.

Suffruticose, small, evergreen subshrub, up to 70 cm tall. Stem branched, younger branches terete, glabrous or puberulent. Leaves opposite decussate, crowded near the apex of branches near spike; leaf blade ovate, ovate-elliptic or oblong-lanceolate, 3-7 cm x 1.5- 4 cm, glabrous or puberulent, margin undulate, apex acute, base attenuated into petiole; petiole 1-3 cm long. Flowers bracteate, sessile, bisexual, hypogynous, orange-coloured, packed into spikes. Spikes dense, terminal and axillary, up to 7 cm x and ca. 1 cm, distinctly quadrangular, angles corresponding to median part of bracts; peduncles +/- equal to spikes, puberulous. Bracts in 4 rows, 14-16 mm x 5-6 mm, lanceolate-elliptic, sometimes with petiole-like base, green, mostly with 5 +/- parallel converging veins, densely pilose, hairs long, soft and white, apex mucronate. Bracteoles nearly as long as bracts, linear, glandular-pubescent and pilose. Sepals 5, free, hairy, unequal, ovate-lanceolate, 7-9 mm long, outer 2 obtuse or bifid, inner smaller. Corolla orange; tube 2-2.5 cm long, narrow, dilated at base, hairy inside and puberulent without, slightly dilated in the midday at the insertion of stamens inside; limb unilabiate, 1-1.5 cm x 2.5-3.5 cm, split to one side to form 5 lobes, lobes unequal, middle largest with truncate apex, gradually smaller laterally with round apex. Stamens 4, included, inserted nearly in middle of corolla tube; filaments very small; anthers large, ca. 2 mm long, monothecous, bearded, apiculate. Ovary 3-3.5 mm long, +/- oblong, glabrous, hairy only at the top, 2-locular, 2 ovules per loculus; style ca. 1 cm long, slender, dilated near apex, glabrous; stigma 2-fid.

Capsule ca. 10 mm x 5 mm, oblong, flattened, +/- quadrangular, 4-seeded. (Mature capsules not observed)

Flowering and Fruiting: April to September
Common Names: Crossandra, Firecracker Flower, Unarmed Orange Nail dye; Priyadarsha (Hindi)