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Botanical name : Zanthoxylum rhetsa (Roxb) DC.
Family: Rutaceae
Subfamily: Toddalioideae
Genus: Zanthoxylum
Kingdom: Plantae
Order: Sapindales.
Scientific names :–
Zanthoxylum rhetsa (Roxb.) DC.
Zanthoxylum oxyphyllum F.-Vill.
Zanthoxylum limonella Alston Kayatena (Tag.)
Fagara budrunga Roxb. Kaytana (Tag.)
Fagara rhetsa Roxb. Kayutana (Tag.)
Fagara piperita Blanco
Common names: Kasabang (Ilk.), Kasalang (Sbl.),Kayatena (Tag.),Indian Ivy Rue; Cape Yellowwood
Sanskrit synonymes:
Lakhuvalkala, Bidalaghni, Asvaghra
Plant name in different languages :
English : Indian prickly ash-tree
Hindi : Badrang
Malayalam : Mullilam, Mulliyllam, Karimurikku, Kattumurikku
Habitat :Altitudinal range from sea level to 200 m. Grows in monsoon forest and drier, more seasonal rain forest. Also occurs in Asia and Malesia.
Throughout Western Ghats, growing wild in semi deciduous forests.
Description:
A moderate sized armed tree grows up to 35 meters in height. Leaves compound, imparipinnate and crowded at the end of branches. Leaflets ovate-lanceolate, acuminate, glabrous and scenty. Flowers yellowish green, small, in terminal panicles. Fruits small globose, fragrant berries contain single seed.
Click to see more pictures:
Stem
Corky bumps or squat, conical prickles usually present on the trunk. Dead bark layered, mustard yellow when cut. Blaze finely layered, darkens markedly on exposure.
Leaves
Leaflet blades about 4-9 x 2-3.5 cm, leaflet stalks about 2-3 mm long. Lateral leaflets unequal-sided, particularly towards the base. Oil dots sparsely scattered in the leaflet but always present at the base of each indentation on the margin of the leaflet blade. Midrib depressed on the upper surface. Lateral veins forming definite loops inside the blade margin. Leaf scars on the twigs show three definite bundles of vascular strands.
Flowers
Inflorescence about 8-14 cm long, shorter than the leaves. Sepals about 0.5-1 mm long. Petals 1-2 mm long. Staminal filaments about 2.5-3 mm long, inserted outside the disk, anthers about 1.5 mm long. Disk irregularly lobed, about 0.5 mm high. Ovary about 1 mm long, style eccentric.
Fruit
Fruits globose, about 6-7 mm diam., surface marked by numerous oil glands. Seeds +/- globular, about 6 mm diam.
Seedlings
Cotyledons orbicular to oblong, rather thick, about 5-6 x 5 mm, margins crenate or appearing crenate because of the marginal oil dots. At the tenth leaf stage: leaf compound, with about nine leaflets. Leaflet blades with about 3-6 teeth on each side. Each tooth with a large oil dot at the base of the sinus. Compound leaf rhachis grooved on the upper surface and armed with curved red spines about 1.5 mm long.
Constituents:-
*Fruit with peel yields volatile oil, 5.8 % with 90% terpenene (sabinene).
*Seeds contain 29.7 % volatile oil.
Properities:
*Fruit is considered stimulant, astringent, aromatic, digestive.
*Bark considered aromatic and aphrodisiac.
Medicinal Uses:-
Useful part : Bark, Leaves, Seeds.
Ayurvedic properities:
Rasa : Tikta, Kashaya
Guna : Lakhu, Rooksha
Virya : Ushna
Plant pacifies vitiated vata, kapha, asthma, bronchitis, cardiac ailments, stomatitis, pyorrhea, hemorrhoids, diarrhea, arthritis, boils, ulcers, poison, and traumatic eye injury.
Folkloric:
*Bark, pounded and mixed with oil, used externally as remedy for stomach pains.
*Decoction of bark taken internally for chest pains.
*Bark chewed and applied to snake bites.
*Fruit used for urinary complaints and dyspepsia caused by atrabilis (the melancholic “humor”). Also used in some forms of diarrhea.
*Bark is considered a bitter aromatic and aphrodisiac.
*Fruit, mixed with honey, taken for rheumatism.
*In Goa, root bark used as purgative for kidneys.
*Essential oil used for cholera.
*In India, traditionally used in diabetes and inflammation; as antispasmodic, diuretic and anti-inflammatory. Paste prepared by rubbing the hard spines on rock and water is applied to breasts to relieve pain and increase lactation in nursing mothers.
Studies
• Antiparasitism: Study investigated the efficacy of Z. rhetsa leaf extract against experimental Hymenolepsis diminuta infections in albino rats. The efficacy of the extract was moderate against immature and adult stages of parasite. Results suggest the leaves of ZR possess significant anticestodal property and supports its use in folk medicine.
• Bark Constituents: Study of bark spines yielded dodecanoic acid, 9,12,octadecanoic acid, oleic acid, octadecanoic acid, 2-hydoxyl-1,3-propanediyl ester, and 1,2-benzenedicarboxylic acid, diisooctylester – phytochemicals that showed various properties: antioxidant, antimicrobial, larvicidal, anti-inflammatory and anti-arthritic.
Disclaimer:
The information presented herein is intended for educational purposes only. Individual results may vary, and before using any supplements, it is always advisable to consult with your own health care provider.
Resources:
http://keys.trin.org.au:8080/key-server/data/0e0f0504-0103-430d-8004-060d07080d04/media/Html/taxon/Zanthoxylum_rhetsa.htm
http://www.stuartxchange.com/Kayetana.html
http://ayurvedicmedicinalplants.com/plants/1192.html
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zanthoxylum
