Habitat: — North-West Provinces, Kumaon, Sindh and the Deccan.
A spreading herb, much branched, sparingly villous. Leaves suborbicular, lobed, crenate ; petiole 6-7 in. Peduncles 1½ in., deflexed after flowering. Bracteoles lanceolate, half the length of the broadly lance-shaped sepals. Corolla 1 in. diam. Petals wedge-shaped, notched, twice the length of the sepals ; claw of petal bearded. Ripe carpels downy, flat or wrinkled.
Parts used : —The leaves and seed.
Use : — -The leaves are mucilaginous and emollient, employed externally in scurvy, and reckoned useful in piles (HONNIGBERGER.)
The seeds possess demulcent properties ; they are prescribed in bronchitis, cough, inflammation of the bladder, and hæmorrhoids ; the seeds are also externally applied in skin diseases (WATT).
147. M. parviflora, Linn., h.f.b.i., i. 321.
Vern. : — Narr, panirak, supra, sonchol, gogi sàg(H. & Pb.)
Habitat :— North- West Himalaya, Upper Bengal, Sindh, and the Punjab.
A comparatively small, spreading herb, slightly downy. Leaves roundish, obsoletely lobed. Peduncles short, spreading after flowering. Bracts linear. Sepals broad, acute. Petals notched, scarcely exceeding the sepals. Claw of petals glabrous. Carpels wrinkled.
Parts used : — The seeds and root.
Use : — The seeds are used as a demulcent in coughs, and ulcers in the bladder (WATT).
148. Sida humilis, Willd., h.f.b.i., i. 322. Roxb. 516.
- Sida veronicifolia, Lamk, is, according to Schuma, the oldest name for S. humilis (Trimen).
Sanskrit : — Bhumibala ;
