Bahera

Terminalia bellirica

Same name in Beng, Hindi, English

A tall handsome deciduous tree from Indian forests with a massive dome-shaped crown with broad egg-shaped leaves clustered at the end of the branches. Has almost all the characteristics of a champion avenue tree but sadly ignored by urban arborists (at least in Kolkata)

Bark: Pale brown to ashy with shallow fissures

Leaf: Simple, deep green, broadly oval, blunt on notched at tip, tapering towards the reasonably long leafstalk.  

Flower: Greenish yellow, slender crowded spikes in little clusters. With a nice honey-like smell (but nauseating when flower is too close)

Fruit: up to 4 cm long drupe grey-brown, velvety outside

Season: The leaves fall during the cold season and are replaced in March and April, when the young foliage is often in various tinges of red. Flowers also appear around this time. Fruits mature in winter

Range/habitat: Almost throughout India in humid and subhumid forests including low hills of Himalayas (e.g., except arid areas, high hills, and rainforest-like area). Range extends eastwards from Myanmar to Indonesia.

Trivia and notes: One of the constituents of ayurvedic concoction “triphala”. Some people consider this is abode of demons or an unlucky tree (I am not aware of any such superstition in Bengal)

Where to Find: (In Rabindra Sarovar, Kolkata)Only one large tree. In the south-east section of the lake. Approximately 200 meters towards Dhakura side, on the left side (lake side) from the T junction where the tar road from lake gardens side gate meets the main road beside. GPS: 22.51045N, 88.36190E