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Albizia lebbeck

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Photographs by: Dr. Maulik Gadani

  • Botanical Name : Albizia lebbeck (L.) Benth.
  • Common Name : Kaliosaras, Shirish
  • Plant Family : Mimosaceae
  • Plant Form : Tree
  • Occurrence (Sectors) : 2, 4, 10, 11, 13, 15 - 22, 24 - 30
  • Occurrence (Special Areas) : Ayurvedic Udyan, Van Chetana Kendra

About Albizia lebbeck Plant :

  • Habit : A large tree with a general bluish appearance, unarmed, deciduous, bark pale.
  • Stem : Erect, cylindrical, branched, solid.
  • Leaves : Bipinnate, main rachis with a large gland on the petiole near the base and one below the highest pair of pinnae, pinnae 2 - 4 pairs; leaflets 5 - 9 pairs.
  • Inflorescence : Heads
  • Flowers :
    • White, fragrant, heads umbellate, from the upper leaf axils, solitary or fasciculate.
    • Filaments exserted, connate below into a short tube.
  • Fruits : Pods 10 - 25 cm long, 3 - 5 cm broad, thin, flat, straight, straw - coloured when old, glabrous and shining.
  • Seeds : 4 - 12, spherical or slightly reniform, smooth, glabrous, yellowish brown.
  • Flowering and Fruiting time : July - Oct ; Oct - Mar
  • Significance :
    • The bark and seeds are used as astringent.
    • The flowers are considered cooling and are externally applied in boils, eruptions, etc.
    • The leaves, seeds etc. are used in opthalmia.
    • The timber is valued for a variety of purposes.