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Botanical Name:
Saraca indica
Ashoka is mature, wild or cultivated trees of Saraca asoca
(Rose.) De. Willd, Synonym Saraca indica Linn, Family
Leguminosae
Common Name(s) in English & Indian Languages
Sanskrit: Kankeli
Assamese: Ashoka
Bengali: Ashoka
English: Asok Tree
Guajarati: Ashoka
Hindi: Ashoka
Kannada: Ashokadamara, Ashokamara, Kankalimara
Kashmiri: Ashok
Malayalam: Asokam
Marathi: Ashok
Oriya: Ashoka
Punjabi: Asok
Tamil: Asogam, Asogu, Asokam
Telugu: Ashokapatta
Botanical description:
Saraca indica Or Saraca asoca is a small evergreen tree 7-10
cm high. It occurs the up to the altitude 750 meters. Leaves
are parpinnate 15-20 cm long and the leaflets 6-12, oblong
and rigidly sub-coriaceous. Leaves are narrowly lanceolate,
cork like at the base and with a shot pestistipules are
intra-petiolar and completely united. The bark is dark brown
or grey or almost black with warty surface. Stem bark are
rough and uneven due to the presence of rounded or
projecting lenticles. Bark channeled, smooth with circular
lenticles and traversely ridged, sometimes cracked. Fracture
splinting exposing striated surface, a thin whitish and
continuous layer is seen beneath the cork leaver. Flowers
are fragrant. Flowers are Polygamous apetalous, yellowish
orange turning to scarlet, in short laterally placed
corymbose, axillary panicles, bract small, deciduous, calyx
petaloid. Seeds are 4-8, ellipsoid-oblong and compressed
Parts used:
Stem bark
Major chemical constituent:
Tannins and glycosides.
Therapeutic uses:
• Inflammation (Sotha)
• Burning Sensation (Daha)
• Menorrhagia or Metrorrhagia (Asargdara)
• Chronic lymphadenopathy / scrofula (Apaci)
• Vitiation of Blood and its components (Raktadosa) |
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