Marorphali / East-Indian Screw Tree
Helicteres isora
- Habit
- Shrub
- Found in India
- Maharashtra, Kerala, Karnataka & more
- Flowering
- April-January
How to identify Marorphali
Identify Marorphali 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 habit.
- Check the distinctive field mark: Distinctive tightly spiraled screw-shaped seed pods.
- Confirm leaf shape: Ovate.
- Confirm leaf margin: Toothed.
- Confirm flower colour: Red/scarlet.
- In season, compare flowering and fruiting time: April-January.
- In India, compare location records such as Maharashtra, Kerala, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and nearby regions.
Plant Details
- Scientific name
- Helicteres isora
- Genus
- Helicteres
- Family
- Sterculiaceae
- Habit
- Shrub
- Habitat
- Deciduous forests, also in plantations and plains
- Habitat type
- Forest, Cultivated
- Native to
- Tropical Asia
- Distribution
- Indian subcontinent, China, Malay Peninsula, Australia, Java
- Found in India
- Maharashtra, Kerala, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Gujarat, Goa, Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Rajasthan, Odisha, Delhi, Bihar, Jharkhand, Puducherry, West Bengal, Punjab, Uttar Pradesh, Chandigarh, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu & Kashmir
- Flowering & fruiting
- April-January
- Conservation status
- Not Evaluated (NE)
Leaf characters
- Leaf shape
- OvaterecordedEgg-shaped, broader near the base.“It has grey bark and alternately arranged, hairy, ovate leaves with serrate margins.” — Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Leaf margin
- ToothedrecordedA saw-like or jagged edge (serrate or dentate).“It has grey bark and alternately arranged, hairy, ovate leaves with serrate margins.” — Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Leaf surface
- PubescentrecordedCovered in short, soft hairs.“It has grey bark and alternately arranged, hairy, ovate leaves with serrate margins.” — Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0
Typical of the family
- Arrangement
- Alternate
Characters marked “recorded” are for Marorphali itself; the rest are typical of the Sterculiaceae family.
Flower & fruit characters
- Flower colour
- Red/scarletrecorded
Typical of the family
- Flower symmetry
- Actinomorphic (radially symmetrical)
- Inflorescence
- Panicle
- Fruit
- Capsule
Characters marked “recorded” are for Marorphali itself; the rest are typical of the Sterculiaceae family — flowering plants only.
Local Names
- Hindi
- मरोड़फली marorphali
- Nepali
- कपासे kapaase, मरोर्फली marorphali, मृगसिङ्गा mrigasingaa
- Bengali
- অন্তমৰা antamora, অন্তমরা
- Tamil
- இடம்புரி itampuri, வலம்புரி valam-puri, இடம்புரி
- Telugu
- నులితడ nulitada, ఆడశ్యామలి, శ్యామలి
- Kannada
- ಭೂತಕರುಳು bhutakarulu, ಚುಚುಲು chuchulu, ಎಡಮುರಿ ಗಿಡ edamuri gida
- Malayalam
- ഈശ്വരമൂലി eeswaramooli, രംശ്വരമുല്ല ransvaramulla, വലന്പിരി valampiri
- Marathi
- अटी ati, धामणी dhamani, केवण kevan
About Marorphali
A member of the Sterculiaceae family, East-Indian screw Tree (Helicteres isora) is a shrub. In India it has been recorded in Maharashtra, Kerala, Karnataka and 20 other states. It grows in deciduous forests, also in plantations and plains. Flowering and fruiting run from April to January.
Uses
It is long used in traditional medicine and stripped for fibre used in rope and matting. Those medicinal uses are traditional attributions, not medical advice.
Sterculiaceae
Cacao/Cola family
Marorphali belongs to the Sterculiaceae family.
The illustration represents the family — not necessarily this exact species.
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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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