Calotropis gigantea - Arka plant

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Sadapushpa, Mandara, Calotropis flower

It is a large shrub growing to 4 m (13 ft) tall. It has clusters of waxy flowers that are either white or lavender in color. Each flower consists of five pointed petals and a small "crown" rising from the center which holds the stamens. The aestivation found in calotropis is valvate i.e. sepals or petals in a whorl just touch one another at the margin, without overlapping. The plant has oval, light green leaves and milky stem. The latex of Calotropis gigantea contains cardiac glycosides, fatty acids, and calcium oxalate.

Uses

Rheumatism, painful joints, Skin blemishes, Leucoderma, vitiligo, Piles, Pain in ears

Parts Used

Root tubers.

Chemical Composition

Atisine, Aconitine, Atisenol, Atidine, Hetisine, Hetisinone, Banzolheteratisine, Histidine, F-dihydroatisine, Heteratisine and Several diterpene alkaloids such aheterophyllin, heterophyllisin, heterophyllidine, and hetidine.

Common names

Language	Common name
Kannada	Ativisa
Hindi	Atis
Malayalam	Ativisam
Tamil	Atividyam
Telugu	Ati visa
Marathi	NA
Gujarathi	NA
Punjabi	NA
Kashmiri	NA
Sanskrit	Ativisha
English	Indian Atees

Habit

Herb

Identification

Leaf

Kind	Shape	Feature
glabrous	sessile	The leaves are variable in shape and size

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Flower

Type	Size	Color and composition	Stamen	More information
Unisexual	2-4cm long	white–violet	10-18	Flowers are Large, hooded and occur in slender racemes or lax leafy panicles. Corolla is hairy. Carpels are five in number

Fruit

Type	Size	Mass	Appearance	Seeds	More information
	7–10 mm (0.28–0.4 in.) long pome		s		{{{6}}}

Other features

List of Ayurvedic medicine in which the herb is used

• Vishatinduka Taila as root juice extract

Mode of Propagation

Seeds, Tuber segment.

How to plant/cultivate

The more common species of Aconitum are generally those cultivated in gardens, especially hybrids. They typically thrive in well-drained evenly moist garden soils like the related hellebores and delphiniums, and can grow in the shade of trees.

Commonly seen growing in areas

western Himalayas, open woodland, moisty soil area.

Photo Gallery

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  Trailing white monkshood (A. reclinatum)

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  Southern blue monkshood (A. uncinatum)

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  Wild Alaskan monkshood (A. delphinifolium) is a flowering species that belongs to the family Ranunculaceae.