Barleria prionitis L.

Taxonomy: Plantae > Tracheophyta > Magnoliopsida > Lamiales > Acanthaceae > Barleria > B. prionitis

Description: Erect armed shrubs, 1.5m tall, with 7–15 mm long spines. The leaf is elliptic, acute, mucronate, base cuneate, sparsely puberulus, ciliate on the margins, gland dotted beneath; petiole to 2 cm. Cymes axillary; bracts oblong mucronate; outer calyx lobes 1.3 x 0.4 cm, inner 1.1x 0.2 cm, mucronate, hirsute; The flowers are 4.5–7 cm in length, the bracteles are 12–20mm in length. The sepals are linear and lanceolate, the stiff is hairy in the middle. The corolla has a powdery white appearence externally and is pubescent, corolla tube obovate, filaments 1.3 cm, staminodes 2, included at the base of the corolla tube; ovary 2.5 mm, style 2.5 cm.

Flowering and Fruiting: September - February

Uses: The whole plant or its specific parts (leaf, stem, root, bark and flower) has been utilized for treatment of toothache, catarrhal affections, whooping cough, inflammations, glandular swellings, urinary infection, jaundice, fever, gastrointestinal disorders and as diuretic and tonic. A wide range of phytochemical constituents including balarenone, pipataline prionisides, barlerinoside, verbascoside, shanzhiside methyl ester, barlerin, acetylbarlerin, lupulinoside, scutellarein have been isolated from the different parts of this plant

Cultivation: Ornamental plant

References

http://www.plantsoftheworldonline.org

https://indiabiodiversity.org