Morphological information

An evergreen shrub, up to 2.4 m high with smooth grey bark, shoots swollen at the nodes,often tinged with dull purple, 4 angled. Leaves drooping 15-20 cm long, elliptic-lanceolated, obtuse, sub entire, dark green and glossy above. Paler beneath and densely punctulate; petioles 2- 2.5 cm long. Flowers pedicelled, crowded in verticils of four, forming terminal elongate thyrsoid panicles up to 30 cm long bracts subulate conspicuous in bud; 5- 6 mm long, arranged in threes, the 2 inner ones persistent, the outer layer, caduceus. Calyx-segments 5- 8 mm long, bristle like, hairy. Corolla orange coloured or brick red, villous tube laterally compressed; upper lip sub erect, deeply emarginated; lower spreading, of 3 ovate acute lobes. Anthers dark brown, pollen white. Capsule 3.8 cm, long, linear-clavate, glabrous. Seeds 12-14 densely hairy.

Flowering              :     January-March

Fruiting                 :     April-May

History                  :

Parts                    :     Fruits and leaves.

Status                  :     Low risk.

Phytochemistry   :     β-sitosterol, lupeol and betulin isolated from leaves; phlogantholide A isolated and its structure proposed.

Agrocultivation    :     It can be propagated by cuttings in the rainy season.

 

Traditional

The problem like liver cirrhosis can be cured if the boiled inflorescence (1-5) is administered orally in 200-300 ml everyday till 15 days (Nepali System,Project report 1999).

 

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