11. Crossandra Salisb., Parad. Land. t. 12. 1806. Nees in DC., Prodr. 11: 280. 1847; Benth. & Hook. f., Gen. Pl. 2: 1094. 1876; Clarke in Hook. f., Fl. Brit. Ind. 4: 492. 1885.
KAMAL AKHTAR MALIK & ABDUL GHAFOOR
Glabrous or hairy, unarmed shrubs or herbs with opposite or whorled, entire or ± crenate leaves. Flowers showy, yellow or red, mostly long peduncled, in subterminal spikes; bracts 4-ranked, large, ovate-lanceolate, imbricate; bracteoles linear-lanceolate, shorter than calyx, hairy. Calyx deeply 5-lobed, lobes unequal. Corolla tube narrow, longer than limb, incurved, limb deeply divided to throat forming a 5-lobed lip, lobes unequal, imbricate. Stamens 4, all fertile, included, anthers longer than filaments, monothecous, sterile theca bearded throughout, muticous, connective mucronate. Ovary bilocular, locules 2-ovuled; style thickened upwards, stigma minutely 2-fid. Capsule oblong, flattened, ± quadrangular, 4-seeded. Seeds ellipsoid-ovate, beset with fringed scales or hairs.
A genus of c. 50 species, mainly distributed in Tropical Africa, Madagascar, Arabia and Indo-Pakistan subcontinent. One cultivated species in Pakistan.
