Sonerila nayariana - Prostrate Sonerila

Prostrate Sonerila is a prostrate, unbranched or rarely with 1 or 2 branches, fleshy, annual herbs, 8-17 cm high. It is name in honour of Dr. M.P. Nayar, for his dedicated research in systematic botany of angiosperms. Flowers are borne at branch-end in a 2-5-flowered, 2-3 cm long, curved cyme, stalked. Flowers are about 1.5 cm across, shortly stalked, 3-merous, purplish; flower-stalk up to 3 mm long. Petals are 3, obovate or rarely spoon-shaped, 0.5-1 x 0.9-1.2 cm, prominently 1-nerved, pointed or rounded and apiculate at tip. Stamens are 3; filaments 4-6 x 0.5-1 mm, broad at base, narrowed towards tip; anthers yellow, lanceshaped, rarely oblong or ovate-lanceshaped, 3-4 x 1.5-2 mm. Sepal-tube is bell-shaped, 0.9-1.2 x 0.3-0.5 cm, teeth 3, ovate, 1.5-2 x 2.5-3 mm. Branches and branchlets are densely bulbous based hairy; hairs 2-4 mm long. Leaves are simple, opposite or clustered at middle, ovate, 1-2.7 x 1-2.3 cm, 6-8 nerved, flat or heart-shaped, rarely wedge-shaped at base, toothed at margins, tip pointed or very shortly tapering or rarely blunt or rounded. Leaves are sparsely hairy on both surfaces, leaf-stalk 0.7-2.5 cm long. Capsules are obovoid, rarely spherical or ovoid, 5-7 x 3-4 mm, prominently ribbed, hairy, enclosed in persistent sepal-cup; seeds many, minute. Prostrate Sonerila is found in Southern Western Ghats. Flowering: August-September.