Vernonia Schreb.

Herbs, shrubs or trees, rarely scandent; branches ribbed, sulcate or grooved, glabrous, variously pubescent, tomentose or woolly. Leaves alternate, simple, variously shaped, membranous, chartaceous, rigid, glabrous to variously pubescent,. villous or tomentose, entire, undulate, serrate or crenate dentate. Inflorescence axillary, terminal, corymbose or paniculate, rardy heads paired or solitary. Heads discoid with 1-many florets. Involucre narrowly campanulate, subcylindric to broadly hemispheric; bracts few-many-seriate, closely to laxly imbricate; outer series usually shorter, progressivel y increasing in length. Corolla pink, purple or violet, regulnr, 5-lobed, glandular or eglandular. Stamens 5; anthers sagittate at base, rounded or subacute at apex, appendaaed. Style arms subulate, hairy. Achenes terete, angled, ribbed or winged, glabrous, pubescent, silky villous, glandular or eglandular. Pappus hairs white, yellowish or reddish, uniseriate or biseriate; outer short or minute or paleaceous rarely longer; inner longer, barhed, rarely paleaceous.

Chiefly tropical and mostly American; ca 1000 species, 52 in India.

KEY TO THE SPECIES

1a. Scandent

2

b. Erect herbs, shrubs or trees

6

2a. Heads 3-5-flowered; pappus hairs white

20. Vernonia elliptica

b. Heads more than 5-flowered; pappus hairs greyish or reddish

3

3a. Achenes glabrous

51. Vernonia vagans

b. Achenes puberulous or pubescent

4

4a. Outer pappus hairs absent; receptacle fulvoull pubescent

6. Vernonia andersoni

b. Outer pappus hairs present; receptacle glabrous

5

5a. Involucral bracts puberulous; pappus hairs reddish

11. Vernonia blanda

b. Involucral bracts ciliate; pappus hairs greyish

5. Vernonia andamanica

6a. Trees

7

b. Herbs or shrubs

13

7a. Heads 1-flowered (very rarely 2-flowered)

8

b. Heads more than 1-flowered

9

8a. Leaves obovate-elliptic. densely brownish tomentose beneath

52. Vernonia vivekanathanii

9a. Leaves densely white woolly beneath

17. Vernonia comorinensis

b. Leaves glabrous or pubescent but not while woolly

10

10a. Pappus hairs reddish

49. Vernonia talaumifolia

b. Pappus hairs whitish or yellowish

11

11a. Achenes glandular

50. Vernonia travancorica

b. Achenes eglandular

12

12a. Achenes puberulous; pappus uniscriate

8. Vernonia arborea

b. Achenes with few scattered hairs; pappus biseriate

53. Vernonia volkameriaefolia

13a. Achenes glabrous

14

b. Achenes silky pubescent or puberulous

36

14a. Achenes 10-ribbed

15

b. Achenes 3-5-angled or ribbed

26

15a. Leaves white tomentose beneath

16

b. Leaves green beneath. scabrid. but not white tomentose

19

16a. Achenes glandular

17

b. Achenes eglandular

18

17a. Leaves crenulate-serrate; pappus hairs biseriate

2. Vernonia anaimudica

b. Leaves faintly serrate in the upper half only; pappus hairs uniseriate

22. Vernonia fysoni

18a. Leaves sessile; pappus hairs reddish, or the outer row short

24. Vernonia heynei

b. Leaves petioled or subsessile; pappus hairs yellowish, outer series absent

25. Vernonia indica

19a. Leaves amplexicaul, subauriculate

28. Vernonia meeboldii

b. Leaves not as above

20

20a. Heads 5-flowered

19. Vernonia divergens

b. Heads more than 5-flowerd

21

21a. Involucral bracts araneous

37. Vernonia pulneyensis

b. Involucral bracts not araneous

22

22a. Heads less than 1 cm across, 6-12-flowered

42. Vernonia saligna

b. Heads more than 1 cm across, 10-30-flowerd

23

b. Leaves membranous; branches ribbed and grooved

24

24a. Involucral bracts acute, apiculate or obtuse; outer ovate

31. Vernonia ornata

b. Involucral bracts long awned or obtuse and mucronate

25

25a. Achenes glandular; involucral bracts acuminate

34. Vernonia pectiniformis

b. Achenese eglandular; outer involucral bracts filiform

36. Vernonia peninsularis

26a. Achenes winged

29. Vernonia multibracteata

b. Achenes not winged

27

27a. Outer pappus paleaceous

28

b. Outer pappus setose or absent

32

28a. Achenes glandular

29

b. Achenes eglandular

31

29a. Achenes trigonous

23. Vernonia gossypina

b. Achenes 4-5-angled

30

30a. Leaves acute

26. Vernonia malabarica

b. Leaves obtuse

12. Vernonia bourdillonii

31a. Leaves sessile, obtuse

43. Vernonia salvifolia

b. Leaves petioled, acute

17. Vernonia comorinensis

32a. Leaves appressedly golden pubescent beneath; outer pappus hairs very short

3. Vernonia anamallica

b. Leaves without golden pubescence beneath; outer pappus either very distinct or absent

33

33a. Pappus hairs reddish

27. Vernonia mastersii

b. Pappus hairs white

34

34a. Branches greyish villous; leaves silky villous, glandular beneath

33. Vernonia patula

b. Branches ferruginous or rusty pubescent; nerves rough hairy or thickly rusty tomentose beneath

35

35a. Leaves ovate, acute or acuminate, Serrate

44. Vernonia setigera

b. Leaves elliptic or obovate, obtuse-rotundate

13. Vernonia bourneana

36a. Outer involucral bracts foliaceous.

7. Vernonia anthelmintica

b. Outer involucral bracts not foliaceous

37

37a. Leaves membranous

38

b. Leaves not membranous

46

38a. Pappus hairs reddish

39

b. Pappus hairs white or straw coloured

41

39a. Leaves subsessile; involucral bracts numerous, acicular, outer subulate

48. Vernonia subsessilis

b. Leaves distinctly petioled; involucral bracts few, outer obtuse

40

40a. Achenes glandular

21. Vernonia extensa

b. Achenes eglandular

31. Vernonia ornata

41a. Stems tetragonous

40. Vernonia rauii

b. Stems terete or striate

42

42a. Outer pappus paleaceous

4. Vernonia anceps

b. Outer pappus hairs setose

43

43a. Achenes glandular

44

b. Achenes eglandular

45

44a. Leaves gland-dottet; outer involucral bracts long aristate

36. Vernonia peninsularis

b. Leaves not gland dotted; outermost involucral bracts minute

35. Vernonia peguensis

45a. Heads more than 1 cm across; involucral bracts araneose

30. Vernonia nayarii

b. Heads less than 1 cm across; involucral bracts not araneose

15. Vernonia cinerea

46a. Heads less than 1 cm across

47

b. Heads more than 1 cm across

54

47a. Outer pappus paleaccous; heads solitary or paired

39. Vernonia ramaswamii

b. Outer pappus hairs subulate, setose or absent; heads more than 2

48

48a. Leaves sessile, spathulate

14. Vernonia cinerascens

b. Leaves petioled, lanceolate, ovate-lanceolate, elliptic, obovate or ovate-rhomboid

49

49a. Achenes glandular

50

b. Achenes eglandular

51

50a. Leaves ovate, serrate, acute-acuminate

44. Vernonia setigera

b. Leaves elliptic, elliptic or obovate, crenate, obtuse-rotundate

13. Vernonia bourneana

51a. Stems and leaves densely white tomentose

1. Vernonia albicans

b. Stems and leaves glabrous, pubescent or fulvous but not white tomentose

52

52a. Involucral bracts obtuse; achenes 10-ribbed

16. Vernonia clivorum

b. Involucrul bracts acute, almost awn tipped; achenes terete

53

53a. Leaves undulately toothed; outer pappus hairs long

15. Vernonia cinerea

b. Leaves sharply serrate; outer pappus hairs very short

18. Vernonia conyzoides

54a. Plants dwarf, up to 20 cm high; leaves linear, erect

41. Vernonia revoluta

b. Plants tall, leaves spreading

55

55a. Outer pappus hairs paleaceous

4. Vernonia anceps

b. Outer pappus hairs setose or absent

56

56a. Involucral bracts numerous, rigid

57

b. Involucral bracts few

58

b. Heads many, corymbose or panicled

48. Vernonia subsessilis

58a. Achenes yellow glandular

35. Vernonia peguensis

b. Achenes eglandular

59

59a. Plants glabrous; leaves sessile

10. Vernonia beddomei

b. Plants scabrid or pubescent at least in the upper part; leaves subsessile

60

60a. Involucral bracts pilose

32. Vernonia parryae

b. Involucral bracts not as above

61

61a. Achenes villous all over

9. Vernonia attenuata

b. Achenes hairy between the ribs only

38. Vernonia pyramidale

List of Lower Taxa