FoI
Bidi Leaf Tree
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Bidi Leaf Tree
ative Photo: Krishan Lal
Common name: Bidi Leaf Tree • Hindi: कठमूली Kathmauli, झिंझेरी Jhinjheri • Marathi: आपटा Aapta, सोना Sona • Tamil: ஆத்தி Atti, தாதகி Tataki • Malayalam: അരംപാലി Arampaali, കുടബുളി Kutabuli, മലയത്തി Malayaththi • Telugu: తెల్ల ఆరెచెట్టు Tella arecettu • Kannada: ಅಪ್ತಾ Aapta, ಅರಳುಕದುಮನ್ದರ Aralukadumandara • Bengali: Banraji, বনরাজ Banraj • Konkani: आप्टो apto • Sanskrit: यमलपत्रक Yamalapatrakah, युग्मपत्र Yugmapatra • Urdu: Gul-e anehnal گل انہنال
Botanical name: Bauhinia racemosa    Family: Caesalpiniaceae (Gulmohar family)
Bidi Leaf Tree is a small crooked tree with drooping branches, growing up to 3-5 m tall. Leaves are typical Bauhinia like, shaped like cow's hooves. They are broader than long, 2-5 X 3-6 cm. The leaves are used for making bidis. Small flowers are borne in loose racemes, 5-10 cm long. Flowers are about 1 cm, greenish white. Petal are 5, narrow lancelike, stamens 10. Pods 13 to 25 cms by 1.8-2.5 cms in size, generally curved, swollen, rigid. Seeds 12 to 20, glabrous, dark reddish brown or black, compressed, 8mm long. Interestingly, it's leaves are exchanged among people as symbolic gold along with शमी tree leaves on the occasion of Dussehra in Maharashtra and Goa. Flowering: February-May.
Identification credit: Dinesh Valke, Krishan Lal Photographed in Thane, Maharashtra.
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