Dabi / Indian Cadaba
Cadaba fruticosa
- Habit
- Shrub (Straggling)
- Found in India
- Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Maharashtra & more
- Flowering
- Throughout the year
How to identify Dabi
Identify Dabi by combining habit, leaf characters, flower or fruit details, location, and its family pattern. Do not rely on one feature alone.
- Look for a shrub (straggling) habit.
- Check the distinctive field mark: Long protruding stamens.
- Confirm leaf shape: Simple oval/round.
- Confirm flower colour: White.
- In season, compare flowering and fruiting time: Throughout the year.
- In India, compare location records such as Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Telangana and nearby regions.
- Confirm it sits within the Capparaceae family pattern, then compare close relatives before deciding it is Dabi.
Plant Details
- Scientific name
- Cadaba fruticosa
- Genus
- Cadaba
- Family
- Capparaceae
- Habit
- Shrub (Straggling)
- Distribution
- India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Myanmar, Sri Lanka, Yemen
- Found in India
- Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Telangana, Gujarat, Andhra Pradesh, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Delhi, Puducherry, Punjab, Uttar Pradesh
- Flowering & fruiting
- Throughout the year
- Conservation status
- Not Evaluated (NE)
Leaf characters
- Leaf shape
- Simple oval/roundrecorded
Typical of the family
- Arrangement
- Alternate
Characters marked “recorded” are for Dabi itself; the rest are typical of the Capparaceae family.
Flower & fruit characters
- Flower colour
- Whiterecorded
Typical of the family
- Flower symmetry
- Actinomorphic (radially symmetrical)
- Inflorescence
- Raceme
- Fruit
- Capsule
Characters marked “recorded” are for Dabi itself; the rest are typical of the Capparaceae family — flowering plants only.
Local Names
- Hindi
- डाबी dabi, कोधब kodhab
- Tamil
- உருவாரச்சம்மட்டி uru-vara-c-camatti, விழுந்தி vilunti, விழுந்தி
- Telugu
- ఆడ మొరినిక, చేకొణది
- Kannada
- ಮರಗಾಡೆ ಗಿಡ maragade gida
- Malayalam
- കാട്ടകത്തി kattakatti, വിഴുതി viluti, വിഴുതി
- Marathi
- हबब habab, काळी टाकळी kali takali, वेलिबी velibi
About Dabi
Indian Cadaba (Cadaba fruticosa) is a species in the Capparaceae family. In India it has been recorded in Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Maharashtra and 9 other states. It flowers and fruits through much of the year.
Capparaceae
Caper Family
Dabi belongs to the Capparaceae family.
The illustration represents the family — not necessarily this exact species.
Explore the Capparaceae 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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