Embelia
tsjeriam-cottam
(Roem. & Schult.) DC.
E.
acutipetalum
(Lam. ex Hassk.)
S.M. & M.R.Almeida
MYRSINACEAE
Vernacular names:
Hindi -
Babrang,
Bhingi
Kannada
-
Vaivaling
Malayalam
-
Vila I
Marathi -
Ambati, Kokla
Sanskrit -
Bidanga,
Vidanga
Tamil -
Vaivilangam, Kakkandankai
Threat status:
Vulnerable
(A 1 c,d) - KA, KL & TN
Habit:
Straggling shrub
Habitat: Deciduous to semi-evergreen forests
Altitude: 600 - 1600 m
Distribution: Global: India, Myanmar and Sri Lanka.
National: Southern states of Maharashtra, Goa, Karnataka,
Kerala, Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh. Regional: Common
in the moist forests of Karnataka, Kerala and Tamil Nadu.
Description:
A large
woody scandent or straggling shrub (rarely erect shrub).
Branchlets densely covered with prominent lenticels, hairless.
Bark
with thin
cracks, brown, exuding resin.
Wood
red,
exhibiting prominent wheel-like medullary rays when cut.
Leaves alternate, elliptic, 5-12 x 2-6 em, papery, base
acute, apex acuminate, margin entire or slightly toothed with
triangular teeth, hairless, dark green above, often purplish
green below; lateral nerves and
reticulations
prominent; leaf stalks up to 1 cm long.
Flowers
bisexual,
greenish white or yellow, about 5 mm across, arranged in 4-7 cm
long axillary racemes.
Fruits
globose,
about 6 _m across, smooth, red when ripe. Seeds 1,
round.
Phenology:
Leaf fall:
December
to January; Flowering: February to March;
Fruiting: April to July
Medicinal uses:
Since the
seeds have same medicinal properties of E. ribes, they
are substituted.
Trade
information:
Local,
regional and global. Dry fruits and seeds of Embelia ribes
are found mixed in the market samples of Embelia
tsjeriam-cottam.
Mode of
propagation:
By seeds
Special
characters:
Leaves,
when seen against the light, show numerous minute gland-dots;
often with pinkish red tinge at basal side; sour
in
taste.
Basal portion of the stem occasionally seen with spinelike
projections, which are actually axillary branches devoid of
leaves
during summer.
