Papda / Indian Boxwood
Gardenia latifolia
- Habit
- Tree
- Found in India
- Telangana, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh & more
- Flowering
- August-March
How to identify Papda
Identify Papda 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.
- Confirm leaf arrangement: Whorled.
- Confirm leaf shape: Obovate.
- Confirm flower colour: White.
- Confirm fruit type: Berry.
- In season, compare flowering and fruiting time: August-March.
- In India, compare location records such as Telangana, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra and nearby regions.
Plant Details
Leaf characters
- Leaf arrangement
- WhorledrecordedThree or more leaves arise from the same point around the stem.“Oppositely arranged, or whorled leaves have very short stalks, and are oval to obovate, smooth, with a small hairy gland in the axils of the veins on the underside, 6–8 in long, by” — Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Leaf shape
- ObovaterecordedEgg-shaped but broader near the tip rather than the base.“Oppositely arranged, or whorled leaves have very short stalks, and are oval to obovate, smooth, with a small hairy gland in the axils of the veins on the underside, 6–8 in long, by” — Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Leaf surface
- PubescentrecordedCovered in short, soft hairs.“Oppositely arranged, or whorled leaves have very short stalks, and are oval to obovate, smooth, with a small hairy gland in the axils of the veins on the underside, 6–8 in long, by” — Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0
Typical of the family
Characters marked “recorded” are for Papda itself; the rest are typical of the Rubiaceae family.
Flower & fruit characters
- Flower colour
- Whiterecorded
- Fruit type
- BerryrecordedA fleshy fruit with seeds embedded directly in the pulp, no central stone.“Berry is even, nearly spherical, crowned with the whole limbs of the sepal.” — Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0
Typical of the family
- Flower symmetry
- Actinomorphic (radially symmetrical)
- Inflorescence
- Cyme
- Fruit
- Berry
Characters marked “recorded” are for Papda itself; the rest are typical of the Rubiaceae family — flowering plants only.
Local Names
- Hindi
- पापड़ा Papda, Papura, Paphar
- Tamil
- Periya Kumpai, Kumbay, Kambil
- Telugu
- Pedda Karinga, Karinguva, Pedda Bikki
- Kannada
- ಕಂಬಿ Kambi, ಕಾಲ್ಕಂಬಿ Kalkambi, ಅಡವಿಬಿಕ್ಕೆ Adavibikke
- Marathi
- Ghogar, Papda, Gogavli
About Papda
A member of the Rubiaceae family, Indian Boxwood (Gardenia latifolia) is a tree. In India it has been recorded in Telangana, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh and 5 other states. Flowering and fruiting run from August to March.
Rubiaceae
Coffee/Madder family
Papda belongs to the Rubiaceae family.
The illustration represents the family — not necessarily this exact species.
Explore the Rubiaceae familySnap it. Know it.
Point your camera at Papda or any plant and SASYA identifies it instantly — on-device, offline, and private.
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.
All plant problem & care guides