Balanites roxburghii

• Botanical Name : Balanites roxburghii Planch
• Synonyms : Balanites aegyptiaca var. roxburghii (Planch.) Duthie
• Common Name : Ingoriyo, Desert Date
• Plant Family : Zygophyllaceae

• Earlier this plant was placed in family Simaroubaceae by Bentham and Hooker but as per modern views it should be placed in family Zygophyllaceae.

• Plant Form : Tree
• Occurrence (Sectors) : 1, 2, 25, 30
• Occurrence (Special Areas) : Indroda Park, Gujarat Forestry Research Foundation, Aranya Van

About Balanites roxburghii Plant :

• Habit : A 2.5-4 m, armed deciduous bushy shrub or small tree.
• Leaves : Bifoliate, petiolate, leaflets 1-3.5 x 0.4-1.7 cm, elliptic-oblong or obovate-oblong, glaucous-green, pubescent.
• Inflorescence : Axillary cymes.
• Flowers : Pale-greenish-yellow, in axillary, fascicled cymes.
• Fruit : Drupes, ovoid, yellowish-green when ripe.
• Flowering and Fruiting Time : December-March; March-July.
• Significance :
  • The fruits have been used in the treatment of liver and spleen diseases.
  • The roots are used for abdominal pains and as a purgative.
  • The fruit can cure mouth ulcer, whooping cough, sleeping sickness and skin diseases.
  • Fruit kernel has been found as a mild laxative, an antidote to arrow poison, and also acts as a vermifuge.