Cycas circinalis
L.
CYCADACEAE
Vernacular
names:
Hindi
-
Jangli
madan must ka phul
Kannada -
Mund isalu,
Goddu eechalu
Malayalam -
Eentha pans
Marathi - Malabari supari
Sanskrit - Hintalah
Tamil -
Madana kama
raja, Salaparai, Eentha panai
Telugu - Rana guvva, Per ita, Madana kamakshi
Threat status:
Critically
Endangered (A 1 c,d)
-
KA & TN
Vulnerable
(A 1 c) - KL
Habit:
Tree
Habitat: Deciduous to semi-evergreen forests, mostly in tall
grasslands and woodland savannahs
Altitude: Up to 1000 m
Distribution:
Global:
East
tropical Africa, Madagascar, Peninsular India, Sri Lanka and
Malasia. National:
Karnataka, Kerala, Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh.
Regional:
Common in
Western and Eastern Ghats in Karnataka, Kerala and Tamil Nadu.
Description: A slow-growing palm-like evergreen tree,
reaching 5-12 m tall. Roots thick, dark brown,
coral-like, arranged as a bead. Trunkstraight,
cylindrical, unbranched, brown, with persistent leaf scars.
Leaves 1-3 m
long, pinnately arranged;
leaflets
opposite,
60-100 pairs, linear, 20-30
cm long,
about 1 em wide, single nerved, apex acuminate, margin entire,
shiny, hairless; leaf stalk 40-60 em long, hairless, stout, with
few short stout slightly curved spines at base. Male and female
flowers
found in
separate plants in the form of 'cones'. Male cones
consist of numerous compactly arranged fleshy leaf-like
structures called as 'microsporophylls', which produce
thousands of powdery male spores. 'Megasporophylls' are
specialised fleshy leaf-like structures, bearing the' seeds',
which are 2-4 in each megasporophyll, egg-shaped, hard,
about 5 x 3 em, hairless, smooth, brownish yellow.
Phenology: Flowering
& Fruiting:
November
to February
Notes:
Included in the negative list of exports notified by Govt. of
India (Notification 2 (RE-98) dt 13.4.98, 1997-2002).
K.M.
Mathew (The Flora of Palni Hills. III. 1635,1999) stating that
it is endemic to Peninsular India by quoting K.D. Hill's
reference (Flora of Australia 48:598-635, 1998).
Medicinal uses: Seeds are used as aphrodisiac as well as to
improve the sperm production. Bark and seeds are used as a
poultice for sores and swellings. Tender leaves relieve
flatulence and vomiting. Powdered endosperm is used to relieve
burning sensation and general debility.
Trade
information:
Local and regional. The pith is sold in Virudhunagar market
(Tamil Nadu) under the name Pei eechchai.
Mode of propagation:
By seeds
and suckers
Special characters:
Readily
recognized by its similarity to the date palm tree (Phoenix
spp.). Male cones seated at the apex of the tree, look like
a pineapple. During spore dispersal male cones emit an
unpleasant odour, choking the breath and causing allergy.
