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Mesua ferrea linn - Nagapushpa

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Nāgakesara

Mesua ferrea is a species in the family Calophyllaceae. This slow-growing tree is named after the heaviness and hardness of its timber. It is widely cultivated as an ornamental due to its graceful shape, grayish-green foliage with a beautiful pink to red flush of drooping young leaves, and large, fragrant white flowers. It is native to wet, tropical parts of Sri Lanka, India, southern Nepal, Burma, Thailand, Indochina, the Philippines, Malaysia and Sumatra, where it grows in evergreen forests, especially in river valleys. In the eastern Himalayas and Western Ghats in India it grows up to altitudes of 1,500 m (4,900 ft), while in Sri Lanka up to 1,000 m (3,300 ft).

Uses

Parts Used

Chemical Composition

Contains volatile oils, flavonoids, apigenin, luteolin, quercetin, kaempferol, tiliroside, triterpene glycosides including euscapic acid and tormentic acid, phenolic acids, and 3%–21% tannins[1]

Common names

Language Common name
Kannada
Hindi Nagalinga Tope gola
Malayalam
Tamil Naagalingam
Telugu
Marathi NA
Gujarathi NA
Punjabi NA
Kashmiri NA
Sanskrit
English Cannon Ball Tree


Properties

Reference: Dravya - Substance, Rasa - Taste, Guna - Qualities, Veerya - Potency, Vipaka - Post-digesion effect, Karma - Pharmacological activity, Prabhava - Therepeutics.

Dravya

Rasa

Tikta (Bitter), Kashaya (Astringent)

Guna

Laghu (Light), Ruksha (Dry), Tikshna (Sharp)

Veerya

Ushna (Hot)

Vipaka

Katu (Pungent)

Karma

Kapha, Vata

Prabhava

Habit

Identification

Leaf

Kind Shape Feature
Simple lanceolate The leaves are divided into 3-6 toothed leaflets, with smaller leaflets in between

[2]

Flower

Type Size Color and composition Stamen More information
Unisexual 2-4cm long white 5-20 Flowers fragrant white, large and solitary or in clusters

Fruit

{{Fruit|ovoid|7–10 mm|fruits ovoid with persistent calyx| dark brown with oily and fleshy cotyledons|1-4}

Other features

List of Ayurvedic medicine in which the herb is used

Where to get the saplings

Mode of Propagation

How to plant/cultivate

Easily grown in most soils, preferring a calcareous soil. Thrives in a dry lightly shaded position, though it prefers full sun.Plants usually self-sow quite freely when growing in a suitable position. The seeds are contained in burrs that can easily attach themselves to clothing or animal's fur, thus transporting them to a new area where they can germinate and grow.The cultivar 'Sweet scented' is popular in France for making tea because the whole plant is sweet scented and the flowers have a spicy apricot-like fragrance[3]

Commonly seen growing in areas

Photo Gallery

References

External Links