Erytherina Indica
Family : Leguminosae-Papilionoideae
Common Name : Indian Coral Tree
English Name : Indian Coral Tree
Hindi Name : Pangara
Telugu Name : Badida Chettu
Bengali Name : Padte madar
Tree Characteristics :
Indian coral tree is a much-branched deciduous tree growing from 3 - 27 metres tall. It has a fluted bole, the thick and sappy bole and branches are armed with large, scattered prickles, though cultivated forms are often unarmed. The plant is widely cultivated throughout the tropics, but especially in India, as an ornamental tree, a living fence, hedge plant, medicinal plant, shade tree and for soil conservation. It is very important as a support plant for crops such as betel, black pepper, jasmine, grape and yams
Nursery Practice :
Ripe pods are collected from the trees during August to September and seeds are extracted, cleaned, graded and stored. The seeds are obtained from the ripe fruits collected from the ground under the mother tree, during the month of June. Fresh seeds, and those harvested within 3 - 6 months of maturity, can be sown without any special treatment. Also, 2 min immersion in water at 80oC is suitable for seed germination in Erythrina indica Germination rates are generally high and are often 100%. Seeds over 6 months old may take between 12 - 18 months to germinate due to their hard seed coat which becomes tougher with age. They may be added to water which has just fallen below boiling point and left in the water as it cools for a minimum of one hour, but up to 12 hours for seed 3 years or more old, and then sown in the usual way. Alternatively, file the seeds with a slender triangular file.
Economic Uses :
Ø The young, tender leaves and young sprouts are eaten as a vegetable. Eaten in curries.
Ø The wood is white wood, but barker towards the centre. It is light in weight, soft, spongy and fibrous. It is used locally for making spears, shields, troughs, outriggers for canoes, and as floats for fishing-nets.
Ø The wood has been tested as a source of pulp for the paper industry. The fibre is acceptable for pulping, having good length, high flexibility and slenderness ratio and low Rankel's ratio.
Ø The wood can smoulder for a long time without going out and so is traditionally used for keeping a fire in the house.
The leaves have diuretic and laxative properties. Crushed leaves are used as an antidote for snake bite.
