Kaji / Spinous Kino Tree
Bridelia retusa
- Habit
- Tree
- Found in India
- Maharashtra, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu & more
- Flowering
- August-February
How to identify Kaji
Identify Kaji by combining habit, leaf characters, flower or fruit details, location, and its family pattern. Do not rely on one feature alone.
- Look for a tree habit.
- Check the distinctive field mark: Spiny bark (spinous kino tree).
- Confirm leaf shape: Cordate.
- Confirm leaf margin: Entire (smooth edge).
- Confirm flower colour: Green.
- In season, compare flowering and fruiting time: August-February.
- In India, compare location records such as Maharashtra, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Rajasthan and nearby regions.
Plant Details
- Scientific name
- Bridelia retusa
- Genus
- Bridelia
- Family
- Euphorbiaceae
- Habit
- Tree
- Habitat
- Deciduous forests
- Habitat type
- Forest
- Distribution
- India, Sri Lanka, Molaccas, Myanmar
- Found in India
- Maharashtra, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Rajasthan, Chhattisgarh, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Gujarat, Sikkim, West Bengal, Bihar, Assam, Meghalaya, Uttar Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh, Jharkhand, Telangana, Arunachal Pradesh, Himachal Pradesh, Puducherry
- Flowering & fruiting
- August-February
- Conservation status
- Not Evaluated (NE)
Leaf characters
- Leaf shape
- CordaterecordedHeart-shaped, with a notch at the base.“The leaves are rounded or heart-shaped at base and are hairy and paler below.” — Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Leaf margin
- Entire (smooth edge)recorded
- Leaf surface
- PubescentrecordedCovered in short, soft hairs.“The leaves are rounded or heart-shaped at base and are hairy and paler below.” — Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0
Typical of the family
- Arrangement
- Alternate
Characters marked “recorded” are for Kaji itself; the rest are typical of the Euphorbiaceae family.
Flower & fruit characters
- Flower colour
- GreenrecordedGreen or greenish
Typical of the family
- Flower symmetry
- Actinomorphic (radially symmetrical)
- Inflorescence
- Cyme
- Fruit
- Capsule
Characters marked “recorded” are for Kaji itself; the rest are typical of the Euphorbiaceae family — flowering plants only.
Local Names
- Hindi
- काझी kaji, Khaja, kassi
- Nepali
- गायो Gayo
- Bengali
- Geio
- Tamil
- Mullu-Vengai, Adamarudu, Kaduga
- Telugu
- Kora maddi
- Malayalam
- Mulkaini, Mulluvenga
- Marathi
- असणा asana
About Kaji
Spinous Kino Tree (Bridelia retusa) is a tree in the Euphorbiaceae family. In India it has been recorded in Maharashtra, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and 18 other states. It grows in deciduous forests. Flowering and fruiting run from August to February.
Euphorbiaceae
Spurge/Euphorbia family
Kaji belongs to the Euphorbiaceae family.
The illustration represents the family — not necessarily this exact species.
Explore the Euphorbiaceae familySnap it. Know it.
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Common plant problems
If you are starting from symptoms instead of a diagnosis, use the plant disease symptom checker to narrow the cause before treating.
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