Flacourtia indica (Burm. f.) Merr.

Flacourtia species are shrubs or trees, armed with simple and branched spines, branches with sympodial growth. Leaves simple, alternate, lanceolate-ovate to elliptic-oblong, margin entire, serrate-dentate to pinnately veined, sometimes 3-5 pliveined at the base, apex acute to acuminate, lateral veins upcurved, thicker near the midrib and diminishing towards the margins, petiolate, stipules minute early caducous or absent. Inflorescence in shortly pedunculate axillary and terminal raceme fascicles, few to many flowers. Flowers unisexual (dioecious) or sometimes bisexual, hypogynous, pedicels articulate, bracts ovate, chartaceous, scalelike, sepals 4-7, imbricate, connate near base, free above, margin ciliate, subpersistent, petals absent, extrastaminal disc, with distinct glands inserted before sepals. Male flowers: Stamens 15-30, filaments filiform, inserted on disk cup, persistent, anthers 2 loculed, globular, dorsifixed, pollen fleshy, tricolporate, reticulate, pistillode absent. Female flowers: Ovary superior, globose, surrounded by disc, carpels 3-10, incompletely loculed, connate, with intruding placentae, ovules often 2 per locule, style connate, free or rarely absent, stigma shortly bilobed or retuse. Fruit indehiscent berry or drupe, ellipsoid-globose when ripe becoming obtusely constricted and ribbed when dried with 2 superposed pyrenes in per locule. Seeds 1-2, ovoid-obovoid, thinly coriaceous, non arillate, cotyledons orbicular.

Shrub

Flowering class: Dicot Habit: Shrub to Small Tree

Flowering and fruiting: November-March

Flacourtia species dioecious, i.e., male (staminate) flowers on one plant, and female (pistillate) flowers on another plant, or sometimes complete, bisexual, i.e., with functional male (androecium) and female (gynoecium), including stamens, carpels. Pollination is entomophilous i.e., by insects, or cleistogamy i.e., by self or allogamy i.e., by cross pollination. Flowering/Fruiting: December-March/May-August.

Seeds may be dispersed by autochory i.e., self dispersal, anemochory i.e., wind dispersal, zoochory i.e., dispersal by birds or animals, anthropochory i.e., dispersal by humans.

Deciduous shrubs or small trees, about 3-7 m tall, usually armed with simple and branched spines, branches with sympodial growth. Leaves simple, alternate, variable, obovate-ovate, suborbicular-oblong, about 1.5-6 x 1-3 cm across, base cuneate to obtuse, sometimes 3-5 pliveined, margin lobed to coarsely serrate-crenate, apex acute, obtuse to sometimes slightly emarginate, leaves often clustered towards apices, lateral veins 5-8 on either side of the midrib, impressed above and slightly prominent beneath, glabrous above, glabrous beneath or pubescent to softly tomentose on the veins beneath, thicker near the midrib and diminishing towards the margins, lamina thick to thin, membranous, chartaceous to subcoriaceous, shiny, petiole reddish, minutely hairy, about 5-10 mm long, stipules minute early caducous or absent. Inflorescence in shortly pedunculate axillary and terminal raceme fascicles or panicles, bracteate, few flowered. Flowers unisexual (dioecious), hypogynous, greenish yellow, about 4 mm across, pedicels articulate, glabrous or hairy, about 3-5 mm long, sepals 4-5, imbricate, connate near base, ovate, margin ciliate, apex obtuse, hairy inside, subglabrous outside, petals absent, extrastaminal disc, with distinct glands inserted before sepals. Male flowers: Stamens numerous, filaments filiform, base minutely hairy, about 2.5 mm long, anthers 2 loculed, versatile, globular, dorsifixed, pollen fleshy, tricolporate, reticulate, pistillode absent. Female flowers: Ovary superior, globose, surrounded by disc, carpels 3-6, incompletely loculed, connate, with intruding placentae, ovules often 2 per locule, style 5-6, little or not connate, stigma slightly recurved, shortly bilobed. Fruit indehiscent berry, ellipsoid-globose, about 5-10 mm across, when ripe first red and turning to dark purple, with 2 superposed pyrenes in per locule. Seeds 5-6, ovoid-obovoid, thinly coriaceous, non arillate, pale yellow to brown.

Flacourtia species are susceptible to various insect pests, powdery mildews and moulds.

Notes: Western Ghats,Deciduous Forests also in the Plains

Scrubs, deciduous to mixed forests, altitude 1200 m.

Swamp forest, cultivated

Deciduous forests, also in the plains

Not evaluated (IUCN).

Medicinal

Used in Ayurvedic, Siddha, Tibetian and folk medicine for jaundice and spleen disorders, fruits are edible. Sometimes grown as hedge plants.Photo of the species*: Flacourtia indica 1, Flacourtia indica (Burm. f.) Merr., Image kind: Photograph. Copyright: Please contact rights holder before commercial use. © Günter Baumann. Supplier: West African Plants. Publisher: Research Institute Senckenberg. Creator: Günter Baumann. Location Created: Malawi. URL: http://160.111.248.28/content/2012/08/24/10/85512_orig.jpg BY-NC-SA Flacourtia indica 2, Flacourtia indica (Burm. f.) Merr., Image kind: Photograph. Copyright: This image was obtained from the Smithsonian Institution. Unless otherwise noted, this image or its contents may be protected by international copyright laws. © Smithsonian Institution, National Museum of Natural History, Department of Botany. Supplier: National Museum of Natural History Collections. Creator: Howard, R.A. Location Created: South Florida. URL: http://160.111.248.28/content/2013/03/10/22/29816_orig.jpg BY-NC-SA Flacourtia indica 3, Flacourtia indica (Burm. f.) Merr., Image kind: Herbarium specimen. Copyright: This image was obtained from the Smithsonian Institution. Unless otherwise noted, this image or its contents may be protected by international copyright laws. © Smithsonian Institution, National Museum of Natural History, Department of Botany. Supplier: National Museum of Natural History Collections. Creator: Sophia Lee. Location Created: Soledad, Cienfuegos, Province of Santa Clara, Cuba, Cienfuegos, West Indies. URL: http://160.111.248.28/content/2013/09/12/03/77865_orig.jpg BY-NC-SA METADATA FIELDS