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4. Terminalia catappa Linn. Mant. 519. 1771. (Fig. 115).
COMBRETACEAE
Terminalia badamia Tulasne—Terminalia moluccana Lamk.—Terminalia myrobalana Roth—
Terminalia subcordata Willd.—Terminalia intermedia Spreng.—Terminalia latifolia Blanco—
Terminalia mauritiana Blanco—Juglans catappa Lour.—Badamia commersoni G&trtn.—Catappa
domestica Rumph.—Catappa litorea Rumph.—Catappa sylvestris Rumph.
Engl. Indian Almond; Sinh. Kottang. Kottamba; 7am. Amandi, Nattuvadumai
Pinga, Siruppinga, Vadumai; Hindi Badami, Hindibadam, Janglibadam; Sans. Desabadama,
Grahadruma, Ingudi, Kshudrabadama, Kshudrabija, Tapasataruvu, Tailaphala, Vatama.
A tree about 25 m high with horizontal whorls of branches; leaves simple, alternate,
clustered towards the ends of branches, very shortly petioled, 15—28 cm long, 10.5—16.5 cm
broad, glabrous and shining above, tomentose below with two glandular depressions near the
base of the midrib on the underside; flowers regular, polygamous, in simple, solitary, axillary,
rusty-tomentose or pilose spikes 6—18 cm long, the upper flowers male and the lower flowers
bisexual, bracts minute; calyx-tube cylindric, adnate to and constricted above the ovary, calyx
lobes of 5 triangular valves, soon deciduous; petals absent; stamens 10 inserted on the calyx
lobes, biseriate, 5 lower stamens opposite the calyx teeth and the 5 higher ones alternating with
them; ovary inferior, unilocular with 2 or 3 pendulous ovules, glabrous or hairy, ellipsoid, slightly
compressed showing two ridges; fruit an indehiscent ellipsoid drupe 3—6 cm long, with a hard
endocarp.
Illustrations. Beddome, Flor. Sylvat. 1: pi. 18. 1868—73; Wight, Ic. PI. Ind. Orient.
\:pl. 172. 1839; Kirtikar andBasu, Indian Med.PI. p/.411. 1933; Herb. Peradeniya, drawing.
Distribution. Probably indigenous to Andamans and the neighbouring islands. It
is now grown widely in India, Burma, Ceylon, Malaya and Philippine Islands. It is common
along the coast in Ceylon.
India. Calcutta, Wallich 3975C. Pen. Ind. Or., Herb. Wight 1006, Kew Distribution
1866—7. Ceylon. Peradeniya, Bot. Gard., cultivated, /. M. Silva, Nov. 1921. Maldive Islands.
Veimandu, Gardiner, 1899—00; Didi 22, 1896; Hulule, Gardiner 5, 1899—00; Christopher, 1888.
Composition. The seeds contain a fixed oil with olcin, pal mil in and stearin. The bark
contains tannin. The leaves and the flowers yield tannin and a sterol. The trunk of the tree
exudes a gum while the bark yields a black dye.
Uses. The astringent bark is used against bilious diarrhoea, gastric fevers and dysentery.
A decoction of the bark is recommended to be taken internally as a remedy for gonorrhoea and
leucorrhoea. In India, the juice of the young leaves is used to prepare an ointment for scabies,
leprosy, and other cutaneous diseases. The bark is a mild diuretic and a fairly potent cardiotonic.
In the East Indies, the plant is used as a remedy for catarrh, diarrhoea and dysenteries
and externally on skin diseases. In Indo-China, the leaves are used as a sudorific and also
applied to rheumatic joints.
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