Oroxylum Indicum on the Gangetic Plains, flowers fallen on a public footpath UD 08042011 001
ushadi Micromini
Dear All:
I was given to understand that best Oroxylum indicum, or Shonyak of Ayurvedic medicine comes from those growing at the Himalayan foothills, and I did not expect them in gangetic plains.
So I was very surprised when in peripheral vision out of running cab window I spotted some sword- like pods, and on second look saw leaves similar those on a 2 foot tall sapling I had seen in a herbal garden in Jamnagar about a decade ago... here was a stand of Oroxylum indicum on the hot humid and almost at or even a foot or two below sea level Gangetic plains.... on the northern fringes of Calcutta...
I stopped and took some pictures, and picked up a fallen flower.... from the PUBLIC sidewalk...
could not see or take pictures of the trunk or the bark etc....because of a huge wall and could not pick up more of the fallen flowers because no sooner had I picked up a flower and spread it open that a cycle riding plains clothes person came and very authoritatively shooed me away.. saying it was a restricted area.... I could not understand how can a public footpath with two bus-stops within 50 feet of where I was standing be a restricted area...
Anyway, when I got home I had some dark and one acceptable picture of the leaves...Pods had previously opened and most likely dispersed its seeds away..the day before it had rained very heavily..... I did not see any on the footpath below in that quick 2 minute sojourn...
Details: *Oroxylum indicum*
Family: Bignoniaceae
Genus: Oroxylum
Species: * Oroxylum indicum*
Sanskrit : अरलु aralu, श्योनक shyonaka
Gujarati and Marathi : टा यिटू tayitu, टेटु tetu
Hindi: शल्लक shallaka
Santhal tribals call it: Rengebanam
The open flower shows 5 stamens …. See recent other threads about Shyonak/oroxylum indicum this week …
*** Root bark and seeds are medicinal…
Root bark is an important constituent of Dashmool…. Very important in normalizing the gut related immune functions and improving the health of GI mucosa… normalizing it… many many more… recent research points to possible anticancer properties of the kwath of dashmool and of the seeds… much remains to study by astute modern clinicians….
Ushadi
Neil Soares
Nice photographs Dr. Usha ! Seeds are clearly seen [in 2 pods on the left and one pod on the right] in the last photograph.
Regards,
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ushadi Micromini
ha ha..
if you keep calling me Dr. Usha, I then have to call you Dr. Neil... that would go against my notions of fully operational democracy.... and I dont want to have to go against the grain....
NICE pictures...
How I wish I could get my hands on a few hundred of these seeds... I want to try out some medicinal self experiment...
Your pictures make it plain to see...
I have seen them in the classes in Jamnagar... they are very light, have "wings" all around ... I do not know what the terminology of winged seeds is....
Usha di
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ushadi Micromini
Usha di
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Neil Soares
Hi,
Photographed this July. Please also check this link :
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Balkar Arya
Regards
Dr Balkar Singh
Head, Deptt. of Botany and Biotechnology
Arya P G College, Panipat
Haryana-132103
09416262964
ushadi Micromini
u
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