AYURVEDIC NAME: Khadira BOTANICALLY: Acacia catechu KNOWN AS: Cutch tree (English) OTHER NAMES: Cutch tree (English), Khair (Hindi), Kachu (Kannada), Karinnali (Malayalam), Karunkali (Tamil), Podalimanu (Telugu) CONCISE DESCRIPTION OF THE TREE: A deciduous tree of moderate size, 9-12 m in height with dark greyish or brown rough bark and hooked short spines. Leaves – compound, leaflets in 30-50 pairs, main rachis pubescent with large gland near the middle of the rachis. Flowers – pale yellow, sessile in peduncled spikes. Fruits – flat brown pods, shiny and with triangular beak at the base. Seeds – 3-10 per pod. Geographically where it grows: Grows on the Eastern slopes of Western Ghats, Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, Punjab, and Himalayas up to 1,500 m Useful part: Bark, heartwood, Resign Harvesting time: November - January ORGANOLEPTIC IDENTIFICATION: TASTE: Bitter, Astringent QUALITY: Light, dry POTENCY: Cold POST-DIGESTIVE EFFECT: Pungent |