Strobilanthes barbata

Strobilanthes barbata Nees, Pl. Asiat. Rar. (Wallich). iii. 85. (syn: Nilgirianthus barbatus (Nees) Bremek.; Ruellia barbata Wall. Cat. ex Nees; Ruellia ciliata Herb. Madr. ex Wall. (ambiguous synonym); Strobilanthes barbatus var. bonaccordensis E. S. S. Kumar &
Raj Vikr.; Strobilanthes tetrapterus Dalz.) as per Catalogue of Life and efi thread;

SW-India (Goa, Karnataka, Kerala, Tamil Nadu) as per Catalogue of Life;

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Gregarious shrubs, 3-4 m high, sometimes subscandent; stems quadrangular, often winged, sulcate, glabrous. Leaves opposite in unequal pairs, ca 15 x 8 cm, elliptic-lanceolate, decurrent at base, entire, crenulate or repand at margin, acute at apex, coriaceous, glabrous, rarely puberulous, lineolate above; lateral nerves 7-12 pairs, raised beneath; petioles winged, ca 5 cm long, often swollen at leaf base, auriculate at base (when winged). Inflorescences spikes, ca 5 cm long, sometimes subsessile 2-4-fascicled heads interrupted at base, dense-flowered; bract imbricate, orbicular, caudate at apex, ca 1.8 cm long, green, glabrous when young, ciliate and glandular-hairy in fruit, grooved in adaxial face, recurved; bracteoles ovate- lanceolate, ca 1.5 cm long, pubescent, ciliate. Calyx ca 1.2 cm long, united to 1/3 at base; lobes subequal, linear-lanceolate, minutely ciliate or not. Corolla tubular-campanulate, ca 2.5 cm long, glabrous outside, hairy inside, white; tubular base slightly shorter than upper campanulate portion; limb nearly erect; lobes 5, ovate-acute, ca 6 mm long, ciliate. Stamens 4, included or slightly exserted, didynamous, united; staminal sheath extending beyond cylinder base; shorter pair ca 3 mm long, hairy only at base; longer pair ca 5 mm long, hairy throughout; filaments arising from different levels on staminal sheath; staminode absent. Ovary glandular-hairy above; ovules 2 in each locule with lower pair smaller and suppressed in seed; style slender, ca 2 cm long. Capsules elliptic, ca 1.2 cm long, 2-seeded; seeds obovate-orbicular, subacute at apex, ca 6 mm across, thin, glabrous, exareolate.  

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Images by A. Shivaprakash (Identified by Giby Kuriakose) (Inserted by J.M.Garg)

Strobilanthus spp in Iruppu, Kodagu, Karnataka:

please find few photos of a Strobilanthus spp with winged stem and petiole; Is it S. ixiocephalus or S. neesianus?
Seen at Iruppu, Kodagu, Karnataka on 30.07.2011

I doubt stem of S. ixiocephalus has wings or even quadrangular!
Another distinguishing character for these two species;
stem glabrous – S. barbatus
stem hairy- S. ixiocephalus

I am not familiar with S. neesianus/ (I think S. neesiana).

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Nilgirianthus barbatus (Nees) Bremek SN 41 : 2 posts by 2 authors. Attachments (2).

Nilgirianthus barbatus (Nees) Bremek,
erect tall wild under shrub from Bramhagiri area (Irpu falls) of coorg

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158 ID wild plant Strobilanthes:

Could not find a match as per comparative images at Strobilanthes

This is Strobilanthes barbatus Nees var. bonaccordensis Santhosh & Raj Vikraman, Journ. Econ. Tax. Bot. 25: 742. 2001. Unfortunately, this has been considered as a synonym of S. barbatus Nees now. I strongly felt that this variety might be standing alone as the typical variety has a winged stem and var bonaccordensis is a wing less stem often rounded in appearence.

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I think this is Strobilathes barbata Nees. The gaping white corolla covered covered in long glandular hairs is characteristic.

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