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Pointed-Leaf Lepidagathis
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Pointed-Leaf Lepidagathis
ative Photo: Pravin Kawale
Common name: Pointed-Leaf Lepidagathis • Marathi: काटे अडुळसा Kate adulsa
Botanical name: Lepidagathis cuspidata    Family: Acanthaceae (Acanthus family)
Synonyms: Ruellia cuspidata

Pointed-Leaf Lepidagathis is an erect spiny shrub, growing to 1-3 ft high. Stems and branches are quadrangular. Oppositely arranged oblong-lancelike leaves are 5-8 cm long. The base tapers into a leaf stalk 1-2 cm long. Upper leaves are smaller, stalkless and with spiny tips. Stalkless flowers appear in spikes 5-10 cm long, at the end of branches. Bracts are 1 cm long and spiny pointed. Flowers are creamish white and 2-lipped. Throat and the upper lip are marked with brownish purple lines. Lower lip is 3-lobed. Apart from Western Ghats, Pointed-Leaf Lepidagathis is also found in Tropical Himalayas, at altitudes of 300-700 m. Flowering: December-January.

Identification credit: Tabish Photographed in Alibag, Maharashtra & Dehradun, Uttarakhand.
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