Sadabahar / Periwinkle
Catharanthus roseus
Also known as Rose Periwinkle
- Habit
- Undershrub
- Found in India
- Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra & more
- Flowering
- Throughout the year
Plant Details
- Scientific name
- Catharanthus roseus
- Genus
- Catharanthus
- Family
- Apocynaceae
- Habit
- Undershrub
- Native to
- Madagascar
- Distribution
- Naturalized in tropics
- Found in India
- Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra, Telangana, Kerala, Karnataka
- Flowering & fruiting
- Throughout the year
- Conservation status
- Not Evaluated (NE)
Leaf characters
- Arrangement
- Opposite
Recorded for Sadabahar.
Flower & fruit characters
Typical of the Apocynaceae family — flowering plants only; individual species can differ.
Local Names
- Hindi
- Sadabahar सदाबहार,सदाबहार sadabahar
- Nepali
- बाह्रमासे फूल Baahramaase Phool
- Bengali
- নযনতাৰা Nayantara, নয়নতারা
- Tamil
- நித்யகல்யாணி Nitayakalyani, நித்திய கல்யாணி, சுடுகாட்டுமல்லி
- Telugu
- బిళ్ళ గన్నేరు Billa Ganneru, బిళ్ళ గన్నేరు
- Kannada
- ಸದಾಪುಷ್ಪ Sadaapushpa, ನಿತ್ಯಪುಷ್ಪ Nityapushpa, ಸದಾಪುಷ್ಪ
- Malayalam
- Shavam Naari, നിത്യകല്യാണി, ഉഷമലരി
- Marathi
- सदाफूली Sadaphuli, सदाफुली
- Gujarati
- બારમાસી
- Assamese
- নয়নতৰা
Sadabahar in India
Sadabahar — literally 'evergreen' — flowers right through the year, which is exactly how it earns its name: Sadabahar सदाबहार (Hindi), நித்யகல்யாணி Nitayakalyani (Tamil), బిళ్ళ గన్నేరు Billa Ganneru (Telugu), ಸದಾಪುಷ್ಪ Sadaapushpa (Kannada), Shavam Naari (Malayalam), सदाफूली Sadaphuli (Marathi). Though originally from Madagascar, Catharanthus roseus has naturalised across India and is recorded throughout Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra, Telangana, Kerala, Karnataka, self-seeding along roadsides and in gardens.
Uses
It is one of the easiest flowering plants for Indian gardens and a common temple and offering flower. The species is also widely noted in traditional medicine and is the source of important plant-derived compounds — but it is toxic if eaten, so any medicinal association should be treated as attributed, not advice.
How to Identify Sadabahar
A neat evergreen undershrub with paired, glossy oval leaves and flat, five-lobed flowers in white, pink or rose, often with a contrasting eye. It flowers continuously and produces slender paired seed pods. A milky sap on broken stems marks it as a member of the Apocynaceae.
Frequently Asked Questions
- What is Periwinkle called in different Indian languages?
- Sadabahar सदाबहार (Hindi); நித்யகல்யாணி Nitayakalyani (Tamil); బిళ్ళ గన్నేరు Billa Ganneru (Telugu); ಸದಾಪುಷ್ಪ Sadaapushpa (Kannada); Shavam Naari (Malayalam); सदाफूली Sadaphuli (Marathi); নযনতাৰা Nayantara (Bengali); બારમાસી (Gujarati).
- Is periwinkle (sadabahar) poisonous?
- Yes — all parts of Catharanthus roseus are toxic if ingested and should be kept away from children and pets, despite its traditional medicinal reputation.
- Does sadabahar really flower all year?
- In most of India it flowers more or less continuously, slowing only in cold spells, and readily self-seeds to form fresh plants.
Apocynaceae
Dogbane family
Sadabahar belongs to the Apocynaceae family.
The illustration represents the family — not necessarily this exact species.
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Common plant problems
All plant problem & care guides →More in Apocynaceae
View all Apocynaceae →Sources: GBIF — Catharanthus roseus (India distribution & vernacular names) (CC BY 4.0) · iNaturalist — Catharanthus roseus (regional names, India observations) (CC BY 4.0) · Wikipedia — Catharanthus roseus (background/comprehension only) (CC BY-SA 4.0)