Morphological information

 Bushy shrub up to 4 m. Stems densely appressed- hairy; hair mostly flattened, scale-like, scabrous, leaves elliptic to lanceolate elliptic, 8-11.5x2.7- 3.5 cm, acute or shortly acuminate, base rounded, cuneate,veins- 5, upper surface with rows of white cells at base of very short hairs; petioles 7-15 mm. Calyx 12- 20 mm. Tube densely covered with appressed, fimbriate margin, scale like hairs, lobes triangular- oblong, 7- 9 mm. Petals mauve to rose purple, obovate, 22- 27 mm. Fruits subglobose truncate apex.

Flowering                   : April-August

Fruiting                      : January -September

History                      :

Parts                         : Root.

Status                       : Low risk

Phytochemistry

Arginine, aspartic acid, glutamic add, glycine, hydroxyproline, leucine, isoleucine, methionine, serine, tyrosine and valine isolated from leaves (J. Indian. Chem. Sbc 1985, 62,789); isolation of two new compounds- octyl docosanoate and 11- methyl- l- tritriacontanol from aerial parts and their characterization (J.Indian Chem. Soc. 1986, 63, 764); aerial parts afforded behenic, lauric, lauroliec, linoeic, myristic, myristoeic, oleic, palmitic, stearic- acids and campesterol, cholesterol, β-sitosterol and stigmasterol (J.Indian Chem. Soc. 1998, 6- 5, 144); a new flavanol diglycoside isolated from aerial parts and characterized as quercetin- 3- 0- α- L- rhamnosyul (1→2)- β- D- galactoside (J. Indian Chem.Soc. 1988, 65, 20- 9); a new alcohol- 32- methyl- 1- tritriacontanol- isolated from leaves along with ursolic acid and β-sitosterol whereas flower yielded kaempferol and p-hydroxybenzoic and gallic acids (J.Indian Chem. Soc. 1988, 65, 385).

Medicinal

Used in diarrhoea and dysentery and also used for healing wounds and other skin diseases. It is also used as an astringent. It is also a remedy to leucorrhoea and employed in the preparation of the gargles.

 

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