Urtica pilulifera L.
2. Urtica pilulifera L., Sp. Pl.: 983 (1753), Plate 48, a. Monoecious, annual herb up to c. 50 cm tall. Stipules prominent, appearing connate at lower nodes; small, free at upper nodes. Leaves long-petioled; lamina ovate to deltoid-ovate, up to 8 cm x 2.5-6.5 cm, coarsely dentate, usually acute; leaf-surface with a few scattered stinging hairs to numerous hairs on the upper surface. Male flowers in slender peduncled, axillary panicles in lower axils or together with female inflorescence in upper axils. Female flowers aggregated into c. 1.3 cm wide balls on up to 3 cm long, thin peduncles; the balls densely setulose because of the dens bristly hairs of the perianth. ad air abnowol geggy ster to stravoita evened Saudi Arabia: Southwestern heights.. Distritribution : Africa, Erope, SW Asia
2. Debregeasia Gaudich. Monoecious shrubs. Leaves alternate, stipulate, simple, 3-veined at the base, serrate, rugose on the upper surface, silvery or gray tomentose on the lower surface. Flowers in axillary dense, globose, sessile or shortly pedunculate heads; the heads usually unisexual. Male flowers with 3 - 4 - (-5)-lobed perianth; stamens as many as the lobes. Female flowers much smaller than the males; perianth persistent, becoming fleshy in fruit; stigma penicillate, sessile. Achenes adherent to the fleshy perianth. About 4 species of which 1 is found in Saudi Arabia. Debregeasia saeneb (Forssk.) Hepper & Wood in Kew Bull. 38: 86 (1983). Plate 49, a. H = Rhus saeneb Forssk. (1775); Boehmeria salicifolia D.Don (1825); Urtica bicolor Roxb. (1832); Debregeasia hypoleuca Wedd. (1856); Debregeasia salicifolia (D.Don) Rendle (1916). Arabic Name: Saeneb Shrub or small tree, up to c. 5 m tall. Stipules connate in the axils, bilobed with 2 rows of silvery white hairs. Leaves shortly petiolate, lamina lanceolate, prominently silvery white beneath with prominent venation showing above the dense silvery woolly tomentum, up to c. 12 x 2 cm, finely serrate, acute. Flower-heads small, up to c. 5 mm across. Male flowers pinkish appearing through the dense tomentum of white hairs. Female flower c. 1 mm long. Fruiting heads up to c. 8 mm across. 82 videdaiq Saudi Arabia Southwestern heights. Distribution Ethiopia, Western Himalayas and Hindukush range. 3. Parietaria L. Monoccious, annual or perennial, polygamous herbs. Leaves alternate exstipulate simple entire. Flowers green, (3-) 4-merous, unisexual or bisexual, in l-several-flowered, axillary, bracteate cymes or involucrate clusters. Perianth (3-) 4-lobed in male and bisexual flowers, tubular and shallowly lobed in female flowers. Stamens as many as calyx lobes. Ovary free from perianth; stigma penicillate, protruding from perianth. Achenes small, enclosed by perianth binma About 30 temperate and tropical species. Only 3 of these have been recorded from Saudi Arabia
Key to the Species. 1. Bracts of female flowers much enlarged in fruit and concealing theo sistual-steo sand no fruiting perianth. + Bracts of female flowers if enlarged then not concealing the fruiting perianth. The hairs on perianth of female flowers straight or hooked but not clavate. Female flowers with clavate hairs on the perianth. and 8-1lom 1. P. alsinifoliahodu Bedal 2 2. Fruiting perianth of bisexual and female flowers similar, cup-shaped with erect lobes: bracts often glandular. Flowers rather inconspicuous. 2. P. debilis +Fruiting perianth of bisexual and female flowers dissimilar, that of bisexual onl flowers noticeably enlarged; bracts usually not glandular. Flowers conspicuous. arext T 3. P. umbricolatge Parietaria alsinifolia Del. Descr. Egypte, Hist. Nat. 137 (1813). Plate 49, c 1. English Name : Pellitory 02 and (bart A mon) mar = Parietaria judaica L. var. bervipetiolata Boiss. (1789); P. punctata Willd. (1805); P. diffusa Mertens (1823); Freirea alsinifolia (Del.) Gaudich. (1826). 081) de Low, annual or rarely perennial, delicate herb up to c. 30 (-45) cm tall. Leaves with prominent, filiform petiole up to c. Loom long, exstipulate; lamina up to 2 (-2.5) cm x 1.5 cm (-2) cm, ovate to broadly ovate to orbiculate, entire, acute or obtuse. Inflorescence of sessile, cymose; Axillary clusters consisting of female and bisexual flowers. Flowers bracteate, the bracts linear lanceolate to broadly ovate-cordate, equaling or longer than the perianth, much enlarged and concealing the female flowers at fruitng. Perianth turning conspicuous red-brown at fruiting. Female flowers 1 - 1.2 x 0.8 mm; the perianth lobes ovate, connivant in fruit. Bisexual flowers up to c. 2 mm long, cup-shaped with erect lobes. Achenes reddish-brown to dark red, almost black. 97 (14480-RTYS Saudi Arabia : Hail and Western mountains. Distribution: North Africa, SW and C. Asia. 2. Parietaria debilis G.Forster, Fl. Ins. Austr.: 73 (1786) similar in habit and habitat to the other two species. However, the bracts do not enlarge to conceal the flowers. long. aug of bobator ation uw loow samoly bom Note: A Ghafoor (Fl. Pak. Fasc. 137, 1981) considers that this taxon should be included in P. lusitanica L. (1753). alogAudi Saudi Arabia : Widespread in rocky areas .id 22 W2mA 3 lesionT sidimai Distribution: N. Africa, SW & C Asia. J. Bot. 51 (1) : 46 (1994) .Plate 49. b. 3. Parietaria umbricola A.G. Miller in Edinb J. Delicate, annual or perennial herb up to c. 25 cm tall. similar to Parietaria alsinifolia Del. except that the flowers clusters are each usually with one bisexual flo wer surrounded by several female flowers, the bracts are free to shortly fused and as long as or shorter than the flowers even in fruit. Female flowers are ovoid, with long spreading hairs towards the tip and papillate below. Perianth of bisexual flowers is cup-shaped with ovate triangular lobes and long spreading-hairy towards the tip, glabrous below. Fruiting perianth prominently reddish brown. Achenes reddish brown to dark red, almost black. Saudi Arabia: Southwestern heights. Distribution: Endemic to Saudi Arabia and Yemen