Acmella (Asteroideae- Heliantheae)


 
Acmella ciliata (Kunth) Cass. (Images by Surajit Koley - validation by Gurcharan Singh (Inserted by Bhagyashri Ranade))
https://groups.google.com/group/indiantreepix/attach/a9f6a57c173e8af7/DSCN6759.jpg?part=0.1&authuser=0&view=1
https://groups.google.com/group/indiantreepix/attach/a9f6a57c173e8af7/DSCN6769.jpg?part=0.7&authuser=0&view=1
https://groups.google.com/group/indiantreepix/attach/a9f6a57c173e8af7/DSCN6767.jpg?part=0.5&authuser=0&view=1
https://groups.google.com/group/indiantreepix/attach/a9f6a57c173e8af7/DSCN6768.jpg?part=0.6&authuser=0&view=1

 
Acmella oleracea (L.) R.K.Jansen (Images by Balkar Singh & (Bhagyashri Ranade - Identified by Gurcharan Singh), Gurcharan Singh & (Gopal Shinde- Identified by Samir Mehta) (Inserted by Bhagyashri Ranade & J.M.Garg))
https://groups.google.com/group/indiantreepix/attach/f222e91e06142a1c/Acmella%20oleracea1%20(2).JPG?part=0.3&authuser=0&view=1
https://groups.google.com/group/indiantreepix/attach/d741ea8b5955472e/070920111664.jpg?part=0.1&authuser=0&view=1

 
Acmella paniculata (Wall. ex DC.) R.K.Jansen (Images by (Satish Phadke - Identified by Gurcharan Singh) & (Prashant Awale - Identified by Gurcharan Singh), (Inserted by Bhagyashri Ranade))
https://groups.google.com/group/indiantreepix/attach/cce81256fec8f6b8/DSCN3398s.jpg?part=0.1&authuser=0&view=1
https://groups.google.com/group/indiantreepix/attach/b0e74af571d48430/IMG_6273.jpg?part=0.1&authuser=0&view=1
https://groups.google.com/group/indiantreepix/attach/b0e74af571d48430/IMG_6266.jpg?part=0.3&authuser=0&view=1
https://groups.google.com/group/indiantreepix/attach/b0e74af571d48430/IMG_6271.jpg?part=0.5&authuser=0&view=1

       
Acmella radicans (Jacq.) R.K.Jansen (Images by (Surajit Koley - validation by Gurcharan Singh) & (Satish Phadke - Identification by Gurcharan Singh), (Inserted by Bhagyashri Ranade))
https://groups.google.com/group/indiantreepix/attach/4d4dec23a53b07c5/DSCN8048.jpg?part=0.1&authuser=0&view=1
https://groups.google.com/group/indiantreepix/attach/75f6a30a0f868177/_MG_5929s.jpg?part=0.4&authuser=0&view=1
https://groups.google.com/group/indiantreepix/attach/75f6a30a0f868177/_MG_5924s.jpg?part=0.2&authuser=0&view=1




The following key can help differentiating species in India of species earlier treated under Spilanthes 
 

1a. Heads with white ray florets, achenes 3-angled............................................................. Blainvillea acmella
1b. Heads discoid or with yellow ray florets, achenes flattened............................................(2)

2a. Heads discoid..................................................................................................................(3)
2b. Heads radiate, ray florets very small, achenes ciliate, pappus of 2-3 bristles.................(7)

3a. Corolla white, greenish white or with purple tinge, 4-merous, pappus of 2-3 bristles......Acmella radicans var. radicans
3b. Corolla pale yellow, yellow or orange yellow...................................................................(4) 

4a. Pappus absent; stems decumbent, rooting at nodes; leaves ovate, ahenes 1.7-2.2 mm,
     glabrous, if sparsely hairy then hairs hooked ....................................................................Acmella calva 
4b. Pappus of 2-3 bristles, achenes hairy, hairs straight, stems erect without nodal roots.....(5)

5a. Mature achenes with cork-like margin; surface tuberculate...............................................Acmella paniculata
5b. Mature achenes without cork-like margin; surface not tuberculate....................................(6)

6a. Corolla (disc floret) 4-merous, phyllaries 5-6, uniseriate, heads 5.8-8 mm high, 
      4-6 mm diam.,receptacle 3-6 mm high...............................................................................Acmella uliginosa
6b. Corolla 5-merous, phyllaries 15-18, triseriate, heads 8-23 mm high, 6-17 mm diam.,
      receptacle 6-21 mm high, leaves ovate-deltate..................................................................Acmella oleracea

7a. Mature achenes with evident cork-like margin; disc corolla 5-merous; heads 
     ovoid; leaves broadly ovate with rounded to cordate base; phyllaries 7-10, biseriate;
     heads 6-10 mm high, 6-9 mm in diam, receptacle 4-8 mm high.........................................Acmella ciliata
7b. Mature achenes without cork-like margin; leaf base cuneate............................................(8)

8a.. Disc corolla 4-merous, heads cone-shaped; leaves elliptic to narrowly ovate, 
      cuneate at base; phyllaries 5-6, heads 5.8-8 mm high, 4-6 mm diam.
      receptacle 3-6 mm high; achenes 1.2-1.8 mm long, ciliate with straight hairs; 
      pappus of two unequal or subequal bristles, one up to 0.7 mm long second
      up to 0.5 mm long............ .................................................................................................Acmella uliginosa 
8b. Disc corolla 5-merous; phyllaries 8-11, biseriate; heads 7.5-11.5 mm high, 6-8.5 mm
      diam, receptacle 5-8.5 mm high;  achenes ahenes 1.7-2.2 mm, glabrous, if sparsely
      hairy then hairs hooked; pappus absent............................................................................Acmella calva
 

 
 

Pl. go through Acmella page with images of species (mainly done by Bhagyashri Ranade ji) in efloraofindia.

If you find any mis-identification, pl. let us know. If anybody can send images of other species of this genera (for incorporation in the website), if any, it will be really nice.

Also, if anybody is interested to take up the activity of inserting images on efloraofindia pages from efloraofindia posts, pl. let us know.