This tree is common in many parts of India. It is also found in many East Asian countries.
This tree in many parts is known as Red Sandalwood, but in Ayurveda Pterocrpus santalinus is true Red sandalwood. In sanskrit Bead tree is Ratnagunj (Gem seed) and Pterocrpus santalinus is Rakta chandan (Blood Sandalwood).
This tree is a member of Fabaceae plant family.
This is a a small tree growing to a height of about 3 to 4 meters. The leaves are bipinnate,3-6 pairs and opposite. The leaflets are alternate in 4-8 pairs, papery, elliptic oblong and dark green above, bluish green below and oblique. The flowers are in short-peduncled racemes. Calyx is minute, lobes short and triangular. Corolla is pale yellow, segments united at the base only. The pods are flat curved and pointed. The seeds are bright, red and with hard shells. The flowering season is March to May.
Usage:
In Ayurveda the fresh leaves are very useful in female diseases of uterus and menstruation. In old times the goldsmiths used seeds as weight, almost all the seeds have equal weight about 30 seeds in 11.5 grammes
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Gujarati: Ratna Gunja, Moti Chanothi
Marathi: Thorlagunj, Ratangunj
Bengali: Ranjana
Kannada: Ane golaganji
Tamil: Ani kundamani, Manjadi
Malayalam: Sem, Manchadi
Telugu: Gurivenda, Enugaguruginji
