Ghunghunia / Common Rattle Pod
Crotalaria retusa
Also known as Big Yellow Pupbush, Cascabelillo, Large Yellow Rattlebox, Rattlebox, Rattlewee, Wedge-Leaf Rattlepod, Yellow Lupin
- Habit
- Undershrub
- Found in India
- Maharashtra, Karnataka, Kerala & more
- Flowering
- August-March
Plant Details
- Scientific name
- Crotalaria retusa
- Genus
- Crotalaria
- Family
- Fabaceae
- Habit
- Undershrub
- Habitat
- Open deciduous forests and scrub forest near moist places
- Native to
- Southeast Asia
- Distribution
- All tropics of the World
- Found in India
- Maharashtra, Karnataka, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, West Bengal, Andhra Pradesh, Andaman & Nicobar Islands, Lakshadweep, Arunachal Pradesh, Gujarat, Odisha, Telangana, Uttarakhand
- Flowering & fruiting
- August-March
- Conservation status
- Not Evaluated (NE)
Leaf characters
- Leaf arrangement
- AlternaterecordedOne leaf per node, arranged in a spiral or zigzag up the stem.“The soft leaves (dark green on the upper surface, lighter underneath) are alternate, and narrowly oblong or wedge-shaped.” — Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Leaf type
- Simple (single blade)recorded
- Leaf shape
- OblongrecordedLonger than wide with roughly parallel sides, the ends rounded.“The soft leaves (dark green on the upper surface, lighter underneath) are alternate, and narrowly oblong or wedge-shaped.” — Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Leaf surface
- Pubescent (softly hairy)recorded
Typical of the family
Characters marked “recorded” are for Ghunghunia itself; the rest are typical of the Fabaceae family.
Flower & fruit characters
- Flower colour
- Yellowrecorded
- Flower arrangement
- RacemerecordedIndividual stalked flowers arranged along a central stem, opening from bottom to top.“The yellow flowers grow widely spaced in racemes at the end of the stem.” — Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Fruit surface
- Inflated (balloon-like)recorded
Typical of the family
- Flower symmetry
- Zygomorphic (bilaterally symmetrical)
- Inflorescence
- Raceme
- Fruit
- Legume
Characters marked “recorded” are for Ghunghunia itself; the rest are typical of the Fabaceae family — flowering plants only.
Local Names
- Hindi
- घुनघुनिया Ghunghunia,घुनघुनिया ghunaghuniya
- Bengali
- অতসী, বনশণ
- Tamil
- கிலுகிலுப்பை Kilukiluppai
- Kannada
- Guluguluppahalli, ಗಿಜಿ ಗಿಜಿ ಗಿಡ
- Malayalam
- Matrghatini, കിലുകിലുക്കി, Crotalaria retusa
- Marathi
- Gagra, खुळखुळा
- Gujarati
- ઘુઘરા
About Ghunghunia
Common Rattle Pod (Crotalaria retusa) belongs to the Fabaceae family, where it grows as a low shrub. In India it has been recorded in Maharashtra, Karnataka, Kerala and 10 other states. It grows in open deciduous forests and scrub forest near moist places. Flowering and fruiting run from August to March.
Uses
In practice it is stripped for fibre used in rope and matting, harvested for fodder and used to hold soil and restore degraded ground. Parts of this plant are reported as poisonous — treat it as unsafe to eat and wash your hands after handling.
Fabaceae
Legume/Bean family
Ghunghunia belongs to the Fabaceae family.
The illustration represents the family — not necessarily this exact species.
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