Category: Uses and benefits

Otonephelium stipulaceum (Beddome) Radlk

Common name
Malayalam: Paviri mulei.

Description: Evergreen trees up to 20 m tall. Leaves alternate, paripinnate, up to 40 cm long; leaflets opposite or alternate, 4-6 pairs, elliptic or elliptic-oblong, up to 15 x 7.5 cm, subacute at both ends, lowest pair of leaflets unequally reniform, stipuliform. Flowers small, polygamous, in axillary and terminal panicles. The calyx is deeply 5-6-lobed and hirsute. There are no petals. Stamens range from 5 to 9. The fruit is a schizocarp, ellipsoid, measuring up to 3 x 2 cm, and is densely covered with soft, weak, hairy prickles. The seeds are partially covered by a succulent aril.

Flowering & Fruiting : February – August.

Distribution: India: In evergreen forests, up to 1000 m. Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and Kerala. Endemic.

Note: The genus Otonephelium is monotypic and endemic to Western Ghats.

Olea dioica Roxb. (OLEACEAE)

Common names
Kannada & Tulu: Bili saroli.
Malayalam: Edana.
Tamil: Koli, Payar.

Description: These evergreen trees stand 12-15 meters tall and feature smooth, grey bark. The leaves are elliptic-lanceolate, measuring 7-15 x 3-6 cm, with an acute base, and an apex ranging from acute to acuminate. They are either entire or crenate, with 8-12 pairs of main nerves, and a petiole 0.6-1.5 cm in length. Flowers polygamous-dioecious, in 4-8 cm long compound panicles, white. Calyx lobes 4, triangular, glabrous. Corolla-tube short, lobes 4, triangular, glabrous. Male flowers: stamens 2; filaments short. Bisexual flowers: stamens 2 (some times 3); filaments inserted on the corolla or sometimes on the ovary. Ovary 2-locular; style short; stigma 2-fid. Fruit a drupe, ellipsoid or ovoid, ca 1.8 cm long, often slightly pointed, purple when ripe. Seed solitary, ellipsoid, rugose.

Flowering & Fruiting: December – April.

Distribution: India: In evergreen and deciduous forests of the Western Ghats, up to 1600 m.

Uses: The tree is planted for shade. Bark and leaves used as febrifuge.

Ochlandra travancorica Benth. ex Gamble (GRAMINEAE)

Common names
Kannada: Vaate bidiru.
Malayalam: Etta, Kar-etta, Vai.
Tamil: Eral, Era-katti, Nanal, Odai.

Description: This bamboo has a shrubby, reed-like appearance. The culms are erect, reaching heights of up to 6 m and diameters of 5 cm, with hollow internodes. Culm sheaths are truncately rounded, measuring up to 20 cm in length, with a mouth adorned with stiff bristles, and a subulate blade. Leaves broadly oblong-lanceolate, up to 30 x 12 cm, often obliquely rounded at base, long setaceous at apex; sheath ending in a smooth callus and short, falcate auricles. Inflorescence a subverticillate, spicate panicle with a few large fertile spikelets and a few much smaller sterile spikelets. Spikelets ovate or oblong-ovate, up to 4 x 1 cm. Glumes up to 5 cm long, mucronate. Stamens up to 120, monadelphous. Stigmas 5-6, plumose. Fruit a caryopsis, oval-oblong, ca 7.5 cm, brown.

Flowering : Flowering cycle of the species is reported to be 7 years. The plant dies down after flowering.

Distribution: India: Gregarious in the lowland evergreen and semi-evergreen forests of Western Ghats often along the sides of rivers and streams. Endemic.

Uses: An ideal material for paper pulp.It is great demand locally for mat and basket making, umbrella handles and walking-sticks. It is also used for temporary huts and thatching. The leaves are eaten by elephants and can be fed to horses if grass is scarce.

Ochlandra scriptoria (Dennst.) C. Fischer (GRAMINEAE)

Common names
Kannada: Vaate bidiru.
Malayalam: Ammei, Ottal.

Description: Shrubby, reed-like bamboo with extensively branching substerranean root-stock. Culms erect, up to 5 m tall and 2.5 cm in diam. internodes hollow. Culm-sheaths truncate, up to 15 cm long, with 2 falcate, long-ciliate auricles; blade long, ensiform. Leaves linear-lanceolate, up to 25 x 3 cm, rounded at base, acuminate at apex; sheath with 2 falcate auricles; ligule very short. Inflorescence a short spike. Spikelets cylindric, acute, fertile few, subsolitary, up to 3 cm long, sterile ones in heads, smaller, up to 1.8 cm long. The glumes, numbering 2-5, are broadly ovate, with an acute or mucronate tip. There are 15-18 or more stamens with free filaments. The stigmas are plumose and come in sets of 3. The fruit is a caryopsis, ovoid, measuring approximately 7.5 x 1.2 cm, and possesses a long beak.

Flowering : Flowers sporadically every year and does not die down.

Distribution: India: Growing in thick clumps on river banks and stream sides. Common in Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and Kerala. Endemic.

Uses: Used mainly in paper/pulp industry. Used for mat and basket making, floats and roofing. Small culms are used for making flutes. It is suitable for planting along margins of ponds and paddy fields as soil binder.

Ochna gamblei King ex Brandis (OCHNACEAE)

Common names
Tamil: Koorykaly.
Telugu: Kuka-moi.

Description: These are sizable shrubs or petite trees with whitish bark. The leaves form tufts at the ends of branchlets, nearly sessile, and vary in shape from ovate, obovate, oblong to broadly elliptic, reaching up to 14 x 7 cm. They are cordate at the base, and their apex is either obtuse or rounded, with margins that are subtly serrate. The leaves have a glaucous appearance. Flowers in compound, many-flowered inflorescence, up to 4.5 cm across, yellow. Sepals 5, ovate or ovate-oblong. Petals 5-8, obovate. Stamens 35-70; anthers more than twice the length of filaments. Pistils 5-10; styles short, connate. Fruits of 3-5 distinct drupes. Seed erect, oblong.

Flowering & Fruiting: March– October.

Distribution: India: Orissa, Assam, Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and Kerala. Common in evergreen and dry deciduous forests of Western Ghats.

Ochreinauclea missionis (Wallich ex G. Don) Ridsd. (RUBIACEAE)

Common names
Kannada: Anavu.
Malayalam & Tamil: Attuvanji, Neer vanji.
Sanskrit: Jaladamsha.

Description: Trees, up to 20 m tall with smooth brown bark. Leaves opposite, elliptic-lanceolate, 10-18 x 4-7 cm, acute at base, rounded to acute at apex, glabrous, shining above, nerves 10-12 pairs; petioles ca 1.5 cm long; stipules persistent. Flowers crowded in globose, usually solitary, terminal heads, yellowish-white, fragrant. Calyx tube turbinate, tomentose, lobes 5. Corolla tube, funnel-shaped, tomentose, lobes 5. Stamens 5, on the throat of the corolla. The ovary is 2-locular with a filiform style and a capitate stigma. The fruit is a fleshy, globose mass of 2-celled pyrenes, appearing yellow when ripe. Numerous ovoid seeds are present.

Flowering : April – August.
Fruiting : October – December.

Distribution: India: West coast, in Malabar and Travancore, up to 500 m, on river banks.

Uses: Stem-bark antileprotic, antirheumatic, in constipation, ulcers; root, root bark antirheumatic, in skin diseases, eye diseases, dropsy, piles, fever, jaundice, oedema and haemophilic disorders.