Digital Garden

Cassia fistula

Semal

Scientific Name: Cassia fistula

Common Name: Amaltas

                  Cassia fistula

Scientific Name- Cassia fistula

Common name- amultash

Family- Fabaceae

Subfamily- Caesalpinioideae

Habit type- Large tree

Cassia fistula is a medium sized deciduous tree, 10 m tall with a straight trunk to 5 m, 1 m diameter and spreading branches.

Leaves-  alternate, pinnate, 30-40 cm long, with 4-8 pairs of ovate leaflets, 7.5-15 cm long, 2-5 cm broad, entire, the petiolules 2-6 mm long.

Bark- Stem bark pale grey, smooth and slender when young and dark brown and rough when old.

Flowers- Flowers bright yellow in terminal, drooping racemes, 30-60 cm long; calyx oblong, obtuse, pubescent; corolla with five subequal, obovate, shortly clawed petals, to 3.5 cm across; stamens 10, upper three with erect filaments to 0.7 cm long and with basifixed anthers; lower three curved and filaments with dorsifixed anthers and the median four stamens with erect filaments, to 1 cm long and with versatile, curved anthers; pistil sessile or stalked, ovary pubescent, style to 0.5 cm long and with terminal stigma.

Fruits- Fruit an indehiscent pod, 40-60 cm long by 1-2 cm diameter, cylindrical, pendulous and terete, containing 25-100 seeds. The pod develops numerous transverse septa between the seeds. When fresh the pods contain a black pulp which on drying adheres to the septa.

Medicinal importance and Significance-

Timber: The reddish wood, hard and heavy is strong and durable, it is suited for cabinetwork, farm implements, inlay work, posts, wheels and mortars.

Tannin or dyestuff: The bark has been employed in tanning.

Medicine: The drug is obtained from the sweetish pulp around the seed. Ayurvedic medicine recognizes the seed as carminative, and laxative. The root is used for adenopathy, burning sensations, leprosy, skin diseases, syphilis, and tubercular glands.

Ornamental Tree