Shalmali

Binomial name:

Bombax ceiba Linn

Synonym:

Bombax  ceiba  Linn,  Bombax  malabaricum  Dc,  Salmalia  malabarica (DC.) (Schott & Endl.), Gossampinus malabarica (DC.) Merr (Ghani, 1971).

Vernacular names:

Common name: Indian bombax, Kapok tree, Red silk cotton tree

Hindi-Semal, Semul

Malayalam-Ilavu, Mullilavu, Poola, Poolamaram, Panjimaram

Plant description in classical literature

Mochras  is  a  plant  exudates  obtained  from  Sembhal  tree.  Sembhal is a very tall tree with approximately 150 feet height.  Bark is whitish; leaves are like a jamun leaf, flowers are red in  color and patels are very thick. Dry fruits  are filled with very  soft silky cotton like material.  Sembhal  tree  exudate  (mochras)  is  a  gummy  material  obtained  from  stem barks  eaten  by  insect.Exudate  is  thick,  white  while  depositing  on  the  bark  and  becomes  blackish  red after  drying.  It is  mostly tasteless  but some time slightly bitter. It is available in easily breakable tear  shaped dry particles.

Botanical description:

Bombax  ceiba  is a  deciduous tree  of up-to  45  m high,  bole  straight, buttress 1 – 2 m high, bark 20 – 30 mm thick, grey mottled with white color; branches horizontal and more or less  whorled. Leaves  are  digitately-compound, alternate, stipulate;  stipules small, lateral; rachis 12 – 25 cm, glabrous; leaflets 5 –  7, whorled; lamina 10 – 20 x 2 – 6 cm, elliptic, elliptic-obovate;  margin entire, glabrou. Flowers are bisexual, dark crimson, 6 –  7  cm  across, solitary  or  2  –  5 together;  calyx  campanulate,  lobes 3 – 4 x 3 cm, glabrous outside, silky inside; petals 5, 8.5, 7.5 cm long; ovary conical, tomentose, 5-celled; ovules many;  style exceeding  the stamens; fruit  a capsule, 8  –  10 x 3 cm,  downy  tomentose,  cylindrical,  blackish  and  glabrous  at  maturity;  seeds  numerous,  pyriform,  smooth,  dark  brown,  embedded in white cotton.

– 18 x 3.5 – 5 cm, elliptic-obovate, fleshy; stamens 65 – 80, 3 –  7.5 cm long; ovary conical, tomentose, 5-celled; ovules many;  style exceeding  the stamens; fruit  a capsule, 8  –  10 x 3 cm,  downy  tomentose,  cylindrical,  blackish  and  glabrous  at  maturity;  seeds  numerous,  pyriform,  smooth,  dark  brown, embedded in white cotton (ITIS Report, 2015)

– 18 x 3.5 – 5 cm, elliptic-obovate, fleshy; stamens 65 – 80, 3 –

– 18 x 3.5 – 5 cm, elliptic-obovate, fleshy; stamens 65 – 80, 3 –  7.5 cm long; ovary conical, tomentose, 5-celled; ovules many;  style exceeding  the stamens; fruit  a capsule, 8  –  10 x 3 cm,  downy  tomentose,  cylindrical,  blackish  and  glabrous  at  maturity;  seeds  numerous,  pyriform,  smooth,  dark  brown, embedded in white cotton (ITIS Report, 2015)

Habitat:

It is widely found in temperate Asia, tropical Asia, Africa and  Australia.  In India,  it is found  at altitudes  up to  1500  m. In  peninsular India, the tree is very common in the dry as well as  moist deciduous  forests and  near rivers. The  tree  is a strong  light-demander, fast growing, grows best on deep sandy loams  or  well-drained  soils,  particularly  in  valleys  and  regions  receiving  50  to  460  cm  annual  rainfall  well  distributed throughout the year.

Part used:

Fruits, heart wood, stem bark, gum, and root

Uses:

Bark demulcent, tonic and styptic. Fruit stimulant, expectorant and diuretic, used in calculus affections and ulceration of bladder and kidneys.Gum is demulcent, tonica and styptic. It is also used in dysentry, haemoptysis, pulmonary tuberculosis, influenza, menorrhagia, fever, burning sensation, skn erruptions and splenomegaly.

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