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Ipomoea pes-caprae L.
Prostrate, creeping, herb; much branched; branches slightly erect, while main stalk horizontal to the ground Tap reeo and several adventatious roots develop from the nodes. These adventatious roots anchores the branches and the main stalk to the sandy soil and acts as a sand binder in the naked sand-dune of coastal regions. Leaves alternate, cauline, upright, exstipulate, simple, petiolate, terete. glabrous, base brownish gree, fleshy, solid, basal portion conspicously twisted, pulvinous Lamina apically bilobed, slightly folded and each fold broadly ovate, entire, straight, succulent, dorsoventral, glabrous, unicostate reticulate venation. Inflorescence solitary cyme, peduncle long about 7.0 cm. solid, glabrous, green, terete, erect, peducle branched, long stalk bears large flower, while dwarf stalk having bud Flower ebracteate, bisexual, complete, regular, erect, pedicellate, odourless, pentamerous, perigynous. Sepals 5, polysepalous, 3 inner large, 2 outer small, inferior, imbricate 1.2 and 0.9 cm long respectively and 0.6 cm wide, ovate, oblong, entire, mucronate, glabrous, herbaceous, green, inconspicuous, parallel margin from base to apex. Petals 5, gamopetalous, twisted, funnel shaped, 5 apical popinted beaks present, which are inwardly bending, violet in colour at base gradually the colour becomes fade with maturation, showy Stamens 5, epipetalous, filament base slightly attached to the corolla base, 2 large and 3 small filaments, solid, base of the filament covered by gregarious white valvate hairs, filament white, solid, glabrous, inserted, anther bilobed, introse. Germination hypogeal Fruit capsule, with apical beak, 1.0 cm long and 1.0 cm across, with persistent large calyx, reddish at margin Economic Importance : Leaves are
used in rheumatism, stomachic, tonic. The extract of the leaves have the
astringent, diauretic, laxative properties. A prominant san binder.
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