Flora of Bangladesh

Maloncho or Alligator weed (A lternanthera philoxeroides , Amaranthaceae) is an aquatic or semi-aquatic perennial herb rooting at nodes. Stem is juicy, slender and hollow. So the plant can easily float on the water.  Other names: Heycha, Hechi-shak, Burma-shak, Bormi-shak. Though the floating plant is found everywhere in Bangladesh, surprisingly it is native to Brazil. In the far past it has been introduced to the subcontinent and Southeast Asia. Flowers are very small, white, on head inflorescence, petals 5. Peduncle is very long.  Leaves are green, slightly serrated, linear, elliptic-lanceolate, 3-8 cm long, opposite, acute at the end. Fruit an utricle, ovoid-orbicular or obcordate. Seed is inverse, lenticular, single-seeded. Flowering occurs in the rainy season. Propagation is caused by cutting or seeds. It grows in damp places, near pond and canal etc. Leaves are eaten as vegetables. It is energizing, emollient and reputed ...

Chondromala, Kumudini or Crested floating-heart ( Nymphoides cristatum , family: Menyanthaceae) is an aquatic flowering plant with long branches. The branches of the floating herb reach the surface of the water. Roots grow from nodes. Other names: Pan shiuli, Pan-shimli, Chandmala, Panjuli.  It is a common aquatic plant of Bangladesh and found throughout the country's beel-jheel, canal and pond along with Water spinach , Keshordam (Creeping water primrose), Bladderwort and Alligator weed . It is also found in India, China and some countries of Southeast Asia.     Leaves are simple, orbicular, deeply cordate, purplish at the edge, veins are green and spread like nets. The sepals is not adjacent to the petals, almost divided. Flowers are white with yellow centre, petals 5, adjacent, glabrous. Each lobe has a crest down the middle of each lobe. Fruit is a capsule, broadly ovoid, subglobose. Seeds 10-20, pale yellowish brown.