Phyllanthus tenellus Roxb.

Phyllanthus tenellus is an erect herbaceous plant, glabrous, between 20 and 60 cm high. The leaves are simple and alternate, more or less sessile with an elliptical or obovate small lamina. The leaves on the main stem fall very early, so that the lateral branches, horizontal and relatively short, look like compound leaves. Male and female flowers are inserted in groups at the base of the leaves. The flowers develop successively so well on young trees, that they can seem lonely. The flowers are very small, about 1 mm in diameter and greenish white in color. The fruit is a glabrous capsule, about 1.5 mm wide.
 
Cotyledons
 
The cotyledons are held by a petiole of about 1 mm long. The lamina is obovate, 3 to 5 mm long and 2 to 3 mm wide.
 
First leaves
The first leaves are alternate, simple, obovate. They are larger than the cotyledons and their venations are more visible, short-stalked to sub-sessile. The blade is 5 to 7 mm long and 4 mm wide. The base is wedged and the apex rounded. The margin is entire and the faces are glabrous. The branching of the plant can occur very quickly, sometimes as from the development of the third leaves.
 
General habit
 
Erect plant, with a single level of short branches, reminiscent of compound leaves. It measures between 20 and 60 cm high, but keeps a rather slender appearance.
 
Underground system
 
Very deep taproot having secondary fine roots.
 
Stem
 
The stem is cylindrical and solid, sometimes woody in the lower part. It is glabrous. The lateral shoots measure 3 to 10 cm and have developed leaves.
 
Leaf
 
The leaves are alternate, simple, more or less sessile. They are quickly deciduous along the main axis. The stipules of the main stem and branches are small, narrowly triangular and acuminate. The lamina is elliptic obovate. It is 7 to 19 mm long and 3.5 to 11 mm wide. It is wide angled or rounded at the apex and wedged at the base. The margin is entire and the pinnate venation is slightly visible. Both sides are glabrous.
 
Inflorescence
 
The inflorescence is fasciculate on the axils of the leaves and consists of two female and two male flowers of different age. The flowers develop more or less successively, so that on the young plants, the flowers can seem lonely.
 
Flower
 
The male flowers fall early. They have a pedicel of 1.5 mm , and 5 elliptic to subcircular thin sepals measuring about 1.5 mm long. The central part of the flower is divided into five free, thin and flattened lobes. There are 5 stamens which are free and curved outwards. The female flowers have a slender pedicel, 3 to 8 mm. The five sepals are narrower than those of the male flowers. They are more or less elliptical, 1 mm long. The center of the flower is in large ring or in deep cuts. The ovary, more or less spherical, is enveloped by the calyx, crowned by three short styles, deeply bilobed with spread and slightly recurved lobes.
 
Fruit
 
The fruit is a sub-spherical capsule, brownish, smooth or finely serrated, 1.5 to 2 mm in diameter, with 3 loculus, each containing two seeds.
 
Seed
 
The seed is trigonal, 0.8 to 1 mm long, in the shape of a quarter orange. The seed coat, light brown, covers the three faces with longitudinal rows of small tubers, reddish and darker.