Common name: Bidi Leaf Tree • Hindi: कठमूली katmauli, झिंझेरी jhinjheri • Marathi: अपटा apta, सोना sona • Tamil: ஆத்தி atti, தாதகி tataki • Malayalam: അരംപാലി arampaali, കുടബുളി kutabuli, മലയത്തി malayaththi • Telugu: తెల్ల ఆరెచెట్టు tella arecettu • Kannada: ಅಪ್ತಾ aapta, ಅರಳುಕದುಮನ್ದರ aralukadumandara • Bengali: banraji, banraj • Konkani: आप्टो apto • Urdu: Gul-e-anehnal • Sanskrit: यमलपत्रक yamalapatrakah, युग्मपत्र yugmapatra
Botanical name: Bauhinia racemosa Family: Caesalpiniaceae (Gulmohar family)
Bidi Leaf Tree is a small crooked tree with drooping branches, growing up to
3-5 m tall. Leaves are typical Bauhinia like, shaped like cow's hooves. They
are broader than long, 2-5 X 3-6 cm. The leaves are used for making bidis.
Small flowers are borne in loose racemes, 5-10 cm long. Flowers are about 1
cm, greenish white. Petal are 5, narrow lancelike, stamens 10. Pods 13 to 25
cms by 1.8-2.5 cms in size, generally curved, swollen, rigid. Seeds 12 to 20,
glabrous, dark reddish brown or black, compressed, 8mm long.
Flowering: February-May.
Identification credit: Dinesh Valke, Krishan Lal
| Photographed in Thane, Maharashtra. |
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