Reseda alba (Introduced)

Reseda alba L., Sp. Pl. 449 1753. (syn: Eresda alba (L.) Spach);
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Medit. to Iran and Eritrea: Albania, Algeria, Baleares, Corse, Cyprus, East Aegean Is., Egypt, Eritrea, France, Greece, Iran, Iraq, Italy, Kriti, Lebanon-Syria, Libya, Morocco, Palestine, Portugal, Sardegna, Sicilia, Sinai, Spain, Tunisia, Turkey, Turkey-in-Europe, Yugoslavia; Introduced into: Arkansas, Belgium, British Columbia, California, Connecticut, Czechoslovakia, Delaware, Germany, Great Britain, Guatemala, Illinois, Ireland, Kansas, Maine, Manitoba, Massachusetts, Michigan, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Ontario, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Québec, Romania, Saskatchewan, South Australia, Taiwan, Tasmania, Vermont, Victoria, Washington, Western Australia as per POWO;
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Annual or perennial herbs, about 10-80 cm tall. Stem erect with longitudinally marked ribs, simple or branched distally, glabrous or sometimes sparsely pilose, stipules glandular. Leaves basal and cauline, usually rosulate, pinnatifid or pinnatisect, oblong-lanceolate about 3-15 x 3-6 cm across, lobes 4-12 pairs, lanceolate-oblong, margin entire, repand or denticulate, glabrous, basal leaves shortly petiolate, upper cauline leaves gradually becoming smaller and sessile. Inflorescence dense racemes, terminal, simple or branched, about 5-40 cm long. Flowers bisexual, usually zygomorphic, bracts linear acicular, cream or yellowish green, persistent, about 3 mm long, pedicel about 2-8 mm long, sepals 4-8, lanceolate-ovate, not reflexed in fruit, connate at the base, margins entire or shortly incised, about 2-2.5 mm across, petals 4-6, unequal, cream white, clawed, connate at the base, margins incised or entire, nectary discs interstaminal, papillose. Stamens 10-14, hypogynous, inserted on eccentric disc, filaments connate at the base, anthers ovoid, about 1-2 mm long. Ovary superior, syncarpous, unilocular, sessile, ovoid, closed on top, 4 carpelled, ovules many, placentas 3, style 3-4, distinctly seperated, stigma capitate. Fruit capsule, erect or pendulous, angular, cylindric, ovoid oblong to subglobose, about 8-14 x 4-6 mm across, 4 toothed at apex, opening widely at apex, papillose or glabrous. Seeds ovoid or reniform, about 1-1.3 mm across, surface rugose, dull, yellow or brown.
Introduced in Nilgiri hills of Tamil Nadu and naturalized.
(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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Reseda alba L.: 4 very high res. images.