Polygala longifolia Poiret, Encycl. 5: 501 1804. (syn: Polygala discolor Buch.-Ham. ex D. Don; Polygala leptalea DC.; Polygala oligophylla DC.; Polygala pyramidalis H. Lév.; Polygala riukiuensis Ohwi);
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Tropical & Subtropical Asia to N. Australia as per POWO;
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Jammu & Kashmir, India (Himachal Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, West Bengal, Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Nagaland, Manipur, Meghalaya, Orissa, Madhya Pradesh, Tamil Nadu), Sri Lanka, Bhutan, Vietnam, China (Guangdong, Guangxi, ?Guizhou, Yunnan), Laos, Nepal, Thailand, peninsular Malaysia, Java, Australia (Western Australia, Northern Territory, Queensland), Ryukyu Isl., N-Sumatra, N-Borneo, SW-Sulawesi, Philippines (Luzon, Culion, Mindanao), Lesser Sunda Isl. (Sumba), Moluccas (Kei Isl.), New Guinea, Cambodia, Andamans (South Andamans), Nicobars (Central Nicobars), Myanmar [Burma] (Bago, Chin, Mandalay, Sagaing, Yangon), Bangladesh as per Catalogue of Life;
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Annual herbs, about 20-60 cm tall. Stems slender, erect, angular or winged, often unbranched, whereas sometimes branched, sparsely pubescent. Leaves simple, alternate, subsessile, basal leaves wider, lanceolate-elliptic, about 5-10 x 4-6 mm across, base attentuate, margin revolute, apex obtuse with mucronate tip, upper linear lanceolate to linear elliptic-oblong, about 10-25 x 3-5 mm across, base tapered, margin entire, apex subacute to acuminate with mucronate tip, glabrous or glabrescent, midrib impressed above and prominent beneath, lateral veins faint or obscure, stipules absent. Inflorescence in terminal, bifurcate racemes, many flowered, glabrous or sparsely pubescent, about 5-20 cm long. Flowers bisexual, zygomorphic, pink or purplish white, about 2-3 mm long, pedicels about 1 mm long, bracts 3, linear lanceolate, obovate, apex acute, caducous, middle one triangular, about 1 mm long, sepals 5, unequal, in 2 series, usually outer 3 small, outer solitary one obovate to linear lanceolate, keeled, outer paired sepals, linear glabrous about 1.5-3 mm long, inner 2 larger petaloid winged sepals, broadly elliptic, base narrowed, apex obtuse, persistent, about 2.5-4 x 1.5-2.5 mm across, enlarged in fruit, tri-veined, veinlets anastomosing, petals 3, pink red, purple, middle ones keeled, about 2 mm long, tubercled crest, lateral ones orbicular, shorter than middle lobes, divided in 4-6 flattened incised appendages. Stamens 8, monadelphous, filaments united basally, variously free or united above, into a somewhat tubular split staminal sheath, about 1-2 mm long, anthers oblong, basifixed, dehiscing from the terminal pore. Ovary laterally compressed, ovoid, bilocular, about 1 mm long, anatropous ovules 2, anatropous, carpels 2, style curved, about 1 mm long, stigma lateral, rounded. Fruit capsule, compressed or flattened, obovate, apex notched, about 3-4 x 2-2.5 mm across, margined with up to 5 mm long wings, dehiscing loculicidal, usually enclosed in persistent sepals or winged sepals. Seeds 2, ellipsoid-obovoid, about 2 x 1 mm across, white silkly hairy, caruncle tri-lobed, membranous, with short lobes.
Grasslands, shaded places and forest edges.

(Attributions- Ganeshaiah, K. N., UAS, Bangalore, India.; Kailash, B. R., ATREE, Bangalore, India.; Royal Norwegian Embassy grants. Indian Bioresource Information Network (IBIN), Department of Biotechnology, New Delhi, India as per India Biodiversity Portal)
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Flora of Manipur: Polygala : 5 posts by 3 authors. Attachments (1)

Polygala persicaraefolia, from Manipur.
Roots of almost all species of Polygala emit a characteristic smell (like Iodex balm) when crushed, due to presence of salicilic acid. The aroma vanishes within few seconds.

I think this property makes it an important medicinal plant


… reply on efi page at Polygala persicariifolia
“I find 4th post from Satara and the last post from Manipur looks different.”


I agree with …
This looks different from other images at Polygala persicariifolia

I find it closer to Polygala abyssinica as per comparative images at Polygala
However, I find its distribution in Himalayas upto Nepal only.

Polygala longifolia Poir. .  Polygala abyssinica have got no distribution !


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Polygala longifolia Poir.: 8 very high res. images.

Location: Surkhet, West Nepal
Altitude:  438m.
Date: 28 August 2021 
Habit : Wild



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