Uses.--The pulp of the ripe fruit has an agreeable odor and
is edible. In India the green fruit is used as an astringent in
diarrhoea and dysentery; the ripe fruit is given in diseases of the
gums and as a gargle. Mir Muhammad Husain states that the ripe fruit
is a refrigerant, astringent, cardiac and general tonic, and is very
efficacious in the treatment of salivation and ulcers of the throat,
strengthening the gums and operating as an astringent. A sorbet made
of the ripe fruit whets the appetite and the pulp is used locally
for bites of venomous animals. In the latter case the pulverized bark
may be used if the fruit cannot be obtained.
The fruit of Ferona is a substitute for Bael (_Ægle Marmelos_), and is
used as such by the English physicians in the hospitals of India. The
tender leaves have an agreeable aroma similar to that of anise and
are used internally in decoction as a stomachic and carminative.
The incised trunk exudes a gum which is used in India as a substitute
for gum arabic and there is an active trade in this gum in the bazars
of Bombay and Calcutta. According to Pereira, it was at one time
imported into England from the east of India under the name of gum
arabic. It exists in the form of irregular, semitransparent pieces, of
a brownish-red color. With water it forms a mucilage as adhesive as gum
arabic, and this solution reddens litmus paper. It is dextrogyrous and
is precipitated by the neutral acetate of lead and by caustic baryta.
Botanical Description.--Tree 3-4 meters high. Leaves fragrant,
opposite, odd-pinnate. Leaflets, 2 pairs, lanceolate, entire,
and glabrous. Common petiole flattened above. Flowers terminal,
white, racemose, with 2 flattened peduncles. Calyx inferior, with
5-6 divisions. Corolla, 5-6 petals. Anthers oval. Ovary oblong,
5-lobuled. Style short, caducous. Stigma spindle-shaped. Ovules
numerous, compressed, in several series. Fruit pulpy, globose, with
woody rind, one compartment and many compressed, oblong seeds.
Habitat.--Mountains of Angat. Woods of Catugán (Iloilo).
SIMARUBACEÆ.
Quassia Family.
_Samadera Indica_, Gaertn. (_Niota tetrapela_, DC. & Blanco; _Manungala
pendula_, Blanco.)
Nom. Vulg.--_Manungal_, Tag., Pam., Bicol.; _Manunagl_, _Linatoganak_,
_Palagarium_, _Daraput_, Vis.
Uses.--The wood and seeds contain an intensely bitter principle. The
Filipinos make cups and vases of the wood and allow water to stand
in them 6-12 hours, thus preparing a solution of the bitter principle
of the plant which they use in various stomach disorders.
Vrij has extracted from the seeds a 33% oil of a bright yellow color,
composed, according to Oudermans, of 84 parts olein to 16 of palmitin
and stearin.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account