AMALTAS/ Indian laburnum

Amaltas / Indian Laburnum / Cassia Fistula

Cassia Fistula, Indian laburnum, Purging fistula, Pudding pipe tree, Aargavadh , अमलतास

 Amaltas. Cassia Fistula Flower

Amaltas Yellow summer flower

Golden Shower Seeds

When a hard whole fruit falls on the ground without splitting open, curiosity sometimes derives foresters to try and find out how its seeds are freed and brought to germination. Jackals cracked open the pods to get at the sweet pulp. From seeds that passed through their digestive tracts and is germinated into a tree. Amaltas can only reproduce with the assistance of animals that eat its fruit pulp. In the forest where it grows naturally, bears, jackals, pigs and monkeys are all unwitting agents in propagating one of our most beautiful trees. On the ridge in Delhi, this role is probably undertaken by jackal, civets and Porcupine too.

What a pretty sight

Seed Pods

Amaltas, Grapes Plant Fruit

                                                    Colors of Indian Summer

                                                                  Leaves of Amaltas

Cassia fistula Pulp

A medium size tree known for its golden yellow flowers. It can grow in poor soil or rocky areas. Its young leaves and flower buds are edible. Spot it at Nehru Park, Amrita Shergill Marg, Hailey Road.

It is the state flower of Kerala and the national tree and flower of Thailand. The tree has strong and durable wood and is used to make furniture, supporting structures and agricultural implements. In Sanskrit it is called 'Aragvadha', meaning 'disease killer' and also has many medicinal benefits. The Amaltas ( Cassia fistula linn ), native to Southeast Asia is one of the most widespread trees in India and South-East Asia, with their presence both in cities as well as in moist and dry forests.

It is also a popular ornamental plant  and is also used in herbal medicine.

Names

Scientific name : Cassia fistula

Golden Shower Tree

Purging cassia

The Indian laburnum

Kani Konna,

Pudding-pipe tree

Sanskrit : Aragvadha

Ratchaphruek in Thailand 

Ehela, is Sinhala name.

dok khoun  in Laos.

Disease killer

Introduction

Cassia fistula
Common name: Indian laburnum
Family: Fabaceae
Description: Tree up to 5 m high. Leaves alternate, pinnate, leaflets up to 8 pairs, ovate-oblong, inflorescence a lax raceme, and drooping up to 50 cm long. Fruit a pod, pendulous, black, cylindrical.
Flowering and Fruits: Mar. – May; Sep.
Native: India, China, Southeast Asia

The Amaltas ( Cassia fistula linn ), native to southeast asia is one of the most widespread trees in India and South-East Asia, with their presence both in cities as well as in moist and dry forests. 

The golden shower tree is a medium-sized tree, growing to 10–20 m (33–66 ft) tall with fast growth. The leaves are deciduous , 15–60 cm (6–24 in) long, and pinnate with three to eight pairs of leaflets, each leaflet 7–21 cm (3–8 in) long and 4–9 cm (1+1⁄2–3+1⁄2 in) broad. The flowers are produced in pendulous racemose  20–40 cm (8–16 in) long, each flower 4–7 cm (1+5⁄8–2+3⁄4 in) diameter with five yellow petals of equal size and shape. The fruit is a legume , 30–60 cm (12–24 in) long and 1.5–2.5 cm (9⁄16–1 in) broad, with a pungent odor and containing several seeds. The tree has strong and very durable wood, and has been used to construct "Ehela Kanuwa", a site at Adam's Peak, Sri Lanka, which is made of C. fistula (ahala, ehela, or aehaela, ඇහැල in Sinhala ) heartwood. The golden shower tree is not a nitrogen fixer.

Amaltas : A medium sized ornamental tree with spreading irregular canopy. Widely cultivated for its arrestingly  beautiful, drooping sprays of bright yellow flowers.

Flower

Flowering: During the hot weather April- May  the tree becomes most conspicuous with its pendulous inflorescence of golden yellow, mildly scented flowers. The tree remains leafless at the commencement of flowering and the end of the flowering season; the leaves start to appear.

Flowers in late April, peaking by mid - May. The rains always induces more flushes of flowers that can last  into October. Flower fragrant, bright yellow,. In drooping sprays up to 60cm long with the oldest flowers at the base. The intensity  of the yellow varies. A flower has 10 stamens of unequal length grouped 3-4-3. Only 3 longer one are fertile.

 

Fruit long cylindrical pipes (fistula in Latin) up to 60 cm long. The seeds inside are stored in little compartments encased in a strong smelling, sweetish pulp. Ripe pods are black and fall whole to the ground. The sweetish fruit pulp is an effective purgative, safe even for pregnant women. Amaltas depends on jackal, pigs and bears for assisting with natural degeneration. Many forest animal feed on a sweetish pulp of the fruit.

Cultivation

Cassia fistula is widely grown as an ornamental plant  in tropical and subtropical areas. It blooms in late spring/early summer in hot, dry weather. Flowering is profuse, with trees being covered with yellow flowers, many times with almost no leaf being seen. It grows well in dry climates. Growth for this tree is best in full sun on well-drained soil; it is relatively drought-tolerant and slightly salt-tolerant. It will tolerate light brief frost, but can get damaged if the cold persists. It can be subject to mildew or leaf spot, especially during the second half of the growing season. The tree blooms better with pronounced differences between summer and winter temperatures

Pollination & Seed Disposal

Various species of bees and butterflies are known to be pollinators of C. fistula flowers, especially carpenter bees  (Xylocopa sp.). In 1911, Robert Scott Troup conducted an experiment to determine how the seeds of C. fistula are dispersed. He found that golden Jackals  feed on the fruits and help in seed dispersal.

Uses

Food 

 In India, flowers of the golden shower tree are sometimes eaten by people. The leaves have also been used to supplement the diets of cattle, sheep, and goats fed with low-quality forages.

Medical

In Ayurvedic medicine, the golden shower tree is known as aragvadha, meaning "disease killer". The fruit pulp is considered a purgative,  

In India, a cathartic made from the pulp is sometimes added to tobacco.

A paste of the flowers is used as an ointment for pimples.

Culture

Cassia fistula is both the national tree  and national flower of Thailand – in Thai ratchaphruek (Thai: ราชพฤกษ์) and the blossoms commonly referred to as dok khun (Thai: ดอกคูน). Its yellow flowers symbolize Thai royalty. A 2006–2007 flower festival, the Royal Flora Ratchaphruek, was named after the tree. Cassia fistula is also featured on a 2003 joint Canadian -Thai design for a 48-cent  stamp, part of a series featuring national emblem.

Vishu Kani Food

The Indian laburnum is the state flower of Kerala. The flowers are of ritual importance in the Vishu  festival of Kerala.The tree has been depicted on a 20-rupee stamp. The tree is frequently cultivated in Buddhist temples in Sri Lanka where the Sinhala name is Ehela, ඇහැල.

In Laos, its blooming flowers known locally as dok khoun are associated with the Lao New Year. People use the flowers as offerings at the temple and also hang them in their homes for the New Year in belief that the flowers will bring happiness and good luck to the households.

The laburnum is the school tree of National Taiwan Normal university, thought to be because of the seed pods' similarity to the whips used by teachers in times past.

In Ayurvedic medicine, Golden Shower Tree is known as "disease killer" and it pacifies the three doshas of vata, pitta and kapha. It expels the pitta and kapha from the body. Its fruit pulp is used as mild laxative. as well as cardiac conditions and stomach problems such as acid reflux.

Amaltas is known to be effective in controlling the growth of bacteria. It is also antifungal in nature. The fruit pulp of Amaltas contains anticandidal properties. 

Other Uses : The young leaves and flower buds of amaltas can be cooked in the form of a stew. The tender leaves, when taken as a soup, is good for digestion. The astringent property of the bark is used in betel paste, whereas the pulp of the plant parts can be used as a spice and added to enhance the taste of various cuisines

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