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Chinese Salacia
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Chinese Salacia
ative elliptic Photo: Dinesh Valke
Common name: Chinese Salacia, Holly-leaved Berried Spindle Tree • Assamese: মধুফল Modhuphol • Bengali: ডিমল Dimal, মধুফল Modhuphal • Gujarati: સપ્તરંગી Saptarangi • Hindi: सप्तरंगी Saptarangi • Kannada: ಏಕನಾಯಕ Ekanaayaka • Konkani: निसळ बोंडी Nisal Bondi • Malayalam: ചെറുകൊരണ്ടി Cherukoranti, ഏകനായകം Ekanaayakam • Marathi: इंगळी Ingali, निसूल बोंडी Nisul Bondi, सप्तरंगी Saptarangi • Odia: ବାତ୍ରା Batra, ସପ୍ତରଙ୍ଗୀ Saptarangi • Sanskrit: एकनायक Ekanayaka, पीतिका Pitika, सप्तचक्र Saptachakra • Tamil: சுண்டன் Cuntan, கருக்குவை Karukkuvai • Telugu: నేరాణి Neraani • Tulu: ಏಕನಾಯಕೆ Ekanayake Source: Names of Plants in India
Botanical name: Salacia chinensis    Family: Celastraceae (Spike-thorn family)
Synonyms: Salacia prinoides, Tontelea prinoides
Chinese Salacia is a climbing shrub, which grows up to 4 m tall. Branchlets are angular, with leaves carried on stalks 8-10 mm long. Leaf blade is elliptic, narrowly ovate-round or obovate-elliptic, 5-11 X 2-5 cm, leathery, base wedge-shaped, margin sparsely toothed, tip nearly acute. Small yellow-green flowers arise in 3-6-flowered fascicles in leaf axils. Flower stalks are 6-10 mm. Sepals are triangular, up to 1 mm. Petals are broadly ovate, 3 mm, broadly spreading or curved outward, with rounded tip. Disk is cup-shaped, 1 mm tall. Berry is round or ovate, 1 cm in diameter, red when ripe, 1-seeded.Chinese Salacia is found in Tropical Asia and N. Australia, including East Himalaya. Flowering: December.
Medicinal uses: The roots of this species have medicinal uses, including normalizing menstruation and invigorating circulation.
Identification credit: Radha Veach Photographed in Tungareshwar WLS, Maharashtra.
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