Reinstatement of Portulaca badamica from P. tuberosa with critical notes on variation in P. tuberosa

Portulacaceae is a monogeneric family with a genus Portulaca comprising more than 150 species worldwide. In India, it is represented by 11 taxa of which three species are endemic. Portulaca tuberosa is a polymorphic species distributed in the Indian subcontinent to North Australia. During revisionary studies of the genus, authors collected different populations of P. tuberosa from India with different morphotypes. Detailed studies were carried out on the variation of P. tuberosa with the pictorial presentation. Furthermore, P. badamica is much distinct species in Clade-Pilosa despite this, misleadingly some workers synonymized the species under P. tuberosa. However, morphological, molecular, and SEM studies show P. badamica and P. tuberosa are unrelated and distinct species. The present work also highlights the variation in P. tuberosa which will avoid further confusion while describing the new taxon as well as the reinstatement of P. badamica from P. tuberosa with the help of all supportive data.