Tamarindus indica L.

Family : Caesalpiniaceae

Synonym(s) : Tamarindus officinalis (Hook), Tamarindus occidentalis, Gaertn.

English Name : Tamarind Tree

Origin : Probably Africa

Description

A large handsome tree with spreading branches and a thick straight trunk, ash-grey bark, height up to 40 feet. Leaves alternate, abruptly pinnated; leaflets light green and a little hairy, in twelve to fifteen pairs. In cold damp weather and after sunset the leaflets close. Flowers fragrant, yellow-veined, red and purple filaments, in terminal and lateral racemes. Legume oblong, pendulous, nearly linear, curved, somewhat compressed, filled with a firm acid pulp. Bark hard and scabrous, never separates into valves; inside the bark are three fibres, one down, on the upper concave margin, the other two at equal distances from the convex edge. Seeds six to twelve, covered with a shiny smooth brown shell, and inserted into the convex side of the pericarp.

Habitat

Lower hills and plains of India as well as other tropical parts of the globe.

Parts Used : Fruit, flower, seed, bark and leaf

Herb Effects

Antiviral (flower); laxative and reduces fever (fruit pulp); astringent (seed); refrigerants in fevers and as laxatives and carminatives.

Active Ingredients

Tartaric and malic acids (fruit and leaf); orientin, iso-orientin, vitexin and iso-vitexin (leaf); tannic acid (seed); acetic acid, alpha-terpineol, citric acid, limonene, safrole (fruit); ascorbic acid, beta-carotene, cinnamaldehyde (flower).

Medicinal Use

As an astringent in bowel complaints, to weaken the action of resinous cathartics (pulp); in correcting bilious disorders, for rheumatism (plant); used in subacid infusions, and a decoction is said to destroy worms in children, and is also useful for jaundice, and externally as a wash for sore eyes and ulcers (leaves)In some forms of sore throat the fruit has been found of service; for asthma (bark).

Reference