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Stinking Cassia
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Stinking Cassia
ative Photo: Thingnam Rajshree
Common name: Stinking Cassia, Chinese senna, foetid cassia, Java bean, low senna, peanut weed, sickle senna, sicklepod • Assamese: Bon medelua, Dari diga, Medeluwa • Bengali: Panevar, Chakunda • Hindi: Panwar, Chakunda, Chakvat • Kannada: ಚಗತೆ, ಚಗಟೆ Chagate, ಚಗಚೆ Chagache, ಚಗಚ್ಚೆ Chagacche, ಚಕ್ರಮರ್ದ Chakramarda, ಚಕ್ರಮರ್ದಕ Chakramardaka, ಕರವಸ Karavasa, ತರುಟಿಗಿ Tarutigi, ತರುಟೆಗೆ Tarutege, ಹೊಲಸಂಗಿ Holasangi • Malayalam: Sakramardakam • Manipuri: ꯊꯧꯅꯝ ꯅꯝꯊꯤꯕꯤ Thounam namthibi • Marathi: Takla, Tankala • Mizo: Kelbe • Oriya: chakunda • Sanskrit: प्रपुन्नाडः Prapunnaad, एडगजः Edagaj, दद्रुघ्नः Dadrughna, चक्रमर्दक: Chakramardak, पद्माटः Padmaat, उरणाख्यः Uranaakhya • Tamil: சேநாவு Senavu • Urdu: Panwar, Panevar, Tarota
Botanical name: Senna tora    Family: Caesalpiniaceae (Gulmohar family)
Synonyms: Cassia tora

Stinking Cassia is a small erect hairlesss shrub, about 1 m tall, commonly found growing wild on roadsides. True to its name, foetid/stinking cassia has a disagreeable smell. It is widely spreading with numerous ascending, hairless branches. The compound leaves are arranged spirally and usually have three pairs of symmetrically egg-shaped leaflets up to 2 inches long. One to three yellow flowers appear on short axillary stems. The linear pods grow to 8 inches long, curve downward and contain many shiny, angular seeds. It occurs abundantly in open pastures, and is very common on roadsides and wasteland. In organic farms of India, Stinking Cassia is used as natural pesticide.
Medicinal uses: According to Ayurveda, the leaves and seeds are useful in leprosy, ringworm, flatulence, colic, dyspepsia, constipation, cough, bronchitis, cardiac disorders.

Identification credit: Gurcharan Singh Photographed in Arunachal Pradesh & Bangalore.

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