The morphological and anatomical studies of Benincasa hispida (Thunb.) Cogn. from Nigeria was carried out with the view to reporting morphological and anatomical characteristics for the first time. Physical and microscopic (microtomy) observations were used. B. hispida is a monoecious climbing or trailing herb, stem hairy, 5-angled, with suborbicular stipuliform bract at the petiole-base; leaves simple, very hairy on both surface, alternate, blade palmately or ovate in young plant, base cordate. Flowering occurs between April and May. Female flowers solitary, male flowers solitary or in a slender-pedunculate racemes, petals-5, cream, yellow or pale yellow, ovary ellipsoid, ovules many, stigma 3-lobed and stamen 3. Fruits are large, weighs 8.5 - 9.0 kg, succulent, densely hairy when young, with a thick waxy deposit when mature, cylindrical to oblong with hairy stalk. Seeds are ovate-obovate, cream. Leaves and petals of male flower are amphistomatic with anomocytic, tetracytic and anisocytic stomata while petals of the female flower are hypostomatic with anomocytic stomata only on the abaxial surface. It has glandular and non-glandular trichomes with uniseriate stalk, clavate and multicellular gland heads. The midrib, petiole, stem, tendril, male and female flower stalks and tendril have hollow pith with 3, 9, 6-7, 16, 14 and 10 bicollateral vascular bundles respectively. The percentage crude protein, ash, carbohydrate, lipid, crude fibre, alkaloid, flavonoid, tannin and phytate could account for the numerous medicinal properties.

In this study, we investigated the comparative anatomy of 17 species from 14 genera of Asteraceae occurring in Nigeria. Dried materials obtained from University of Port Harcourt Herbarium (UPH) were used for this study. The midrib of specimens were hand sectioned, stained with 1% safranin or alcian blue, mounted on slide, observed under microscope and micro-photographed using Leica WILD MPS 52 microscope camera on Leitz Diaplan microscope. The results showed that twelve species Aspilia africana, Chromolaena odorata, Conyza sumatrensis, Emilia preatamissa, Eleutheranthera ruderalis, Metanthera scandens, Synedrella nodiflora, Tithonia diversifolia, Tridax procumbens, Vernonia cinarae, Vernonia biafrae and Emilia coccinea have secretory duct while Adenostemma sp., Ageratum conyzoides, Bidens pilosa, Eclipta alba and Vernonia amygdalina not have secretory ducts. The number of abaxial and adaxial parenchymatous cells, shape of the midrib, number and arrangement of the vascular bundle varied form one species or genera to other. These characters are dependable in delimitating the family.

Comparative anatomy of the fruit stalk and tendril of nine (9) species representing 8 genera of Cucurbits from Nigeria has been carried out to complement the existing taxonomic data on the family. Fresh plant materials from representative members of the genera Zehneria, Luffa, Momordica, Coccinnia, Telfairia, Cucurbita, Lagenaria and Cucumis collected from the wild during field trips to various parts of Nigeria were used for this study. The specimens were wax embedded, sectioned, stained and photographed with Leitz Diaplan photomicroscope fitted with Leica WILD MPS 52 camera. The findings of this study showed that there are similarities and variations in the shape, number and size of vascular bundles, nature of epidermis, layers and nature of sclerenchymatuous, chllenchymatuous and chlorenchymatuous cells in the fruit stalk and tendril could be used to delimit the species of Cucurbitaceae in Nigeria. The variation in number and layers of these tissues among the species studied include vascular bundles (4 -22 in fruit stalk, 4 -10 in tendril), sclerenchymatuous cells (1 -8 layers in both tendril and fruit stalk), chlorenchymatuous cells (1 -8 layers in both tendril and fruit stalk) and collenchymatuous cells (1 -6 layers in friut stalks, 2 -6 layers in tendrils). Druses and prismatic crystals were observed among the species and the taxonomic implications of these features are discussed and represent the first report on the anatomy of fruit stalk of these cucurbits from Nigeria.

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