Kandel / Bakau Putih
Bruguiera cylindrica
- Habit
- Tree
- Found in India
- Kerala, Maharashtra, Goa & more
- Flowering
- January-October
How to identify Kandel
Identify Kandel 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: Knee-like root growths, mangrove tree.
- Confirm leaf arrangement: Opposite.
- Confirm leaf type: Simple.
- Confirm flower colour: Red.
- In season, compare flowering and fruiting time: January-October.
- In India, compare location records such as Kerala, Maharashtra, Goa, Andhra Pradesh and nearby regions.
Plant Details
- Scientific name
- Bruguiera cylindrica
- Genus
- Bruguiera
- Family
- Rhizophoraceae
- Habit
- Tree
- Habitat
- Tidal forests
- Distribution
- India, SE. Asia, Malesia to N.Australia
- Found in India
- Kerala, Maharashtra, Goa, Andhra Pradesh, West Bengal, Andaman & Nicobar Islands, Gujarat, Tamil Nadu
- Flowering & fruiting
- January-October
- Conservation status
- Least Concern (LC)
Leaf characters
- Leaf arrangement
- OppositerecordedTwo leaves arise from the stem at the same point, facing each other.“The glossy green leaves are opposite, simple and elliptical with pointed ends.” — Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Leaf type
- SimplerecordedA single, undivided leaf blade.“The glossy green leaves are opposite, simple and elliptical with pointed ends.” — Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Leaf shape
- EllipticrecordedWidest at the middle, tapering evenly at both ends.“The glossy green leaves are opposite, simple and elliptical with pointed ends.” — Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0
Characters marked “recorded” are for Kandel itself; the rest are typical of the Rhizophoraceae family.
Flower & fruit characters
- Flower colour
- Redrecorded“Bruguiera cylindrica can be confused with Bruguiera gymnorhiza, but that has larger, red flowers and red sepals which remain attached to the propagule, which is a straight cylinder” — Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0
Characters marked “recorded” are for Kandel itself; the rest are typical of the Rhizophoraceae family — flowering plants only.
Local Names
- Bengali
- বকুল কাঁকড়া bakula kankara, সোনা চম্পা sona champa, ঠুসিয়া thushia
- Tamil
- காக்கண் kaakandal, காகந்தன் kaakandan, பண்ணுக்குச்சி pannukkucci
- Malayalam
- ചെറുകണ്ടല് cheru-kantal, കുറ്റിക്കണ്ടൽ kurrikkantal, കുറ്റിക്കണ്ടൽ
- Marathi
- कांडेल kandel, कनिल kanil, लहान झुंबर lahan zumbar
About Kandel
Bakau Putih (Bruguiera cylindrica) is a tree in the Rhizophoraceae family. In India it has been recorded in Kerala, Maharashtra, Goa and 5 other states. It grows in tidal forests. Flowering and fruiting run from January to October.
Uses
In practice it is grown for parts that are eaten, long used in traditional medicine and cut for timber and furniture. Those medicinal uses are traditional attributions, not medical advice.
Rhizophoraceae
Mangrove Family
Kandel belongs to the Rhizophoraceae family.
The illustration represents the family — not necessarily this exact species.
Explore the Rhizophoraceae 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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