Botanical Name

Helicteres isora 

Family

Sterculiaceae

Sanskrit name

Aavartani

English name

East-Indian screw tree, Nut-leaved screw tree 

Hindi name

Marorphali

Kannada

Kauri

Habit

Shrub

Habitat

Dry deciduous forests, scrub, dry grasslands on slopes.

Plant Description

East-Indian screw tree is a sub-deciduous shrub or small tree with grey coloured bark. Leaves simple, serrate margin, scabrous above and pubescent beneath. Flowers solitary or in sparse clusters, with red petals turning pale blue when old. Fruits greenish brown, beaked, cylindrical, spirally twisted on ripening.

Distribution

South East Asia, Australia.

Part Used

Root, stem, bark, seeds

.

Medicinal uses

used in diarrhoea , dysentry, dry cough, bleeding disoredrs, worm infestation,

Ecological significance

Attracts sunbirds.