Sida acuta Burm. f.

Habit

Erect or ascending annual or perennial herb or subshrub

Family Description

Herbs,shrubs,trees or climber; indumentum usually stellate; stems often fibrous. Leaves alternate, simple or lobed, usually palmately 3-7-veined from base, sometimes pinnately veined; stipulate. Monoecious, rarely dioecious; flowers axillary, solitary, or in 2-many-flowered, terminalor axillary racemes or panicles, bisexual, rarely unisexual, actinomorphic; usually subtended by an epicalyx of 3-many, free or connate, segments. Calyx of 4(-5)+/-connate sepals;epicalyx present or absent.Petals 5,free, adnate to base of staminal column.Stamens with filaments united around style into staminal column, bearing pollen throughout or divided at apex into numerous filaments or 5-many-branches.Ovary superior,2-many-celled;style simple or 2-many branched.Fruit a loculicidally dehiscent,rarely indehiscent capsule, or schizocarpic, consisting of 5-many mericarps around a central columella.

Genus Description

Annual or perinnial herbs or shrubs. Leaves simple, pinnately or palmately veined; stipules persistent. Flowers in 1-several-flowered axillary fasciles, or crowded at the end of branches. Pedicels jointed. Epicalyx absent. Sepals 5, connate to middle, lobes triangular, acuminate. Petals 5, not clawed. Staminal column 1.5-3mm, divided at apex into numerous as cells; stigmas capitate. Fruit subglobose, of 5-12, 1-seeded mericarps, awnless or with 2 awns, dehiscent at apex or by disintegration of base.

Species description

Erect or ascending annual or perennial herb or subshrub, 0.5-1m, branched throughout, shoots thinly stellate-pubescent becoming glabrous. Leaves narrowly lanceolate to lanceolate, 1-5(-8)x0.4-1.5(-2)cm, acute, base cuneate, rarely rounded, margin serrate, glabrescent, petiole 3-4mm; stipules of each pair unequal, filiform to linear-lanceolate, 3-10mm. Flowers axillary, solitary or 2-5 flowered; pedicels 2-3mm. Calyx 5-8mm. Petals yellow, 8-10(-12)mm. Style branches 5-10. Mericarps 5-8(-10), c 2.5mm, reticulate; awms c 1mm, glabrous or with ascendin hairs.