Moullava spicata (Dalz.) Nicolson (CAESALPINIACEAE)
Common names
Kannada: Gajjiga balli.
Description: Robust woody climbers with scattered, recurved prickles. Leaves bipinnate, rachis 20-35 cm long; pinnae 4-6 pairs, 7-13 cm long; leaflets 5-7 pairs, oblong, ca 4 x 2 cm, rounded to slightly cordate at base, subacute or rounded at apex. Flowers in 35 – 50 cm long narrow racemes; rachis brown pubescent. Calyx red, densely puberulous. Petals 5, obovate – spathulate, 7-9 mm long, yellow. Stamens 10, alternately long and short; filaments densely pilose at base. The ovary is densely pubescent. The pods are linear-oblong, swollen above the seeds, and constructed between them, with thickened sutures. The seeds, numbering 2-4, are obovate-oblong, measuring approximately 8 x 1.5 cm, and have a hard, thick testa.
Flowering & Fruiting: November – March.
Distribution: India: Frequent in Western Ghats. Maharashtra, Karnataka and Kerala. Endemic.
Uses: Roots are used in pneumonia and the bark in skin diseases.
