Typical of the Apocynaceae family
Ichnocarpus frutescens
Dirgha-Mula / Slender Dog-Bane दीर्घ मूला
Hindi name · See all regional names ↓
Also known as Black Creeper
- Habit
- Liana
- Found in India
- Karnataka, Kerala, Rajasthan & more
- Flowering
- August-December
Dirgha-Mula in regional languages
Find the name you know, then compare it with the botanical profile. Columns list recorded aliases; they are not paired translations. A Latin spelling appears only when it is present in the source record.
| Language | Regional script | Recorded Latin spelling |
|---|---|---|
| Hindi | दीर्घ मूला · काली दूधी · श्यामलता | Dirgha-Mula, Kali Dudhi, Shyamalata |
| Nepali | दुधे लहरा | Dudhe Lahara |
| Bengali | শ্যামা লতা | Shyama Lata |
| Tamil | ஊதற்கொடி | Utar-Koti |
| Telugu | ముంతగజ్జనము | Munta-Gaj-Janamu |
| Kannada | ಗೌರಿಬಳ್ಳಿ · ಹಾಲುಗೆಣಸು · ಕರಿಹಂಬು | Gauriballi, Halugenasu, Karihambu |
| Malayalam | നന്നാറി · പാൽവള്ളി | Nannari, Palvalli |
| Marathi | काटे भोवरी · कृष्णसारिवा · श्यामलता | Kate Bhowari, Krishna Sariva, Shyamalata |
See the original recorded names
- Hindi
- दीर्घ मूला Dirgha-Mula, काली दूधी Kali Dudhi, श्यामलता Shyamalata
- Nepali
- दुधे लहरा Dudhe Lahara
- Bengali
- শ্যামা লতা Shyama Lata, শ্যামা লতা
- Tamil
- ஊதற்கொடி Utar-Koti
- Telugu
- ముంతగజ్జనము Munta-Gaj-Janamu
- Kannada
- ಗೌರಿಬಳ್ಳಿ Gauriballi, ಹಾಲುಗೆಣಸು Halugenasu, ಕರಿಹಂಬು Karihambu
- Malayalam
- നന്നാറി Nannari, പാൽവള്ളി Palvalli, പാൽവള്ളി
- Marathi
- काटे भोवरी Kate Bhowari, कृष्णसारिवा Krishna Sariva, श्यामलता Shyamalata
Ecology & growing context
- Native status · Kew WCVP
- WCVP native range includes Andaman Is., Assam, India, Nicobar Is., West Himalaya Kew dataset ↗
Kew WCVP dataset; accepted-name match. Dataset matching is separate from an individual regional review. Recorded worldwide native range: Trop. & Subtrop. Asia to N. Australia.
- Recorded habitat
- Deciduous forests and plains
- Explore nearby plants
- Karnataka →Kerala →Rajasthan →
Occurrence records show where a plant has been recorded; they do not establish that it is native there. Compare local habitat and growing conditions when choosing plants for a garden.
How to identify Dirgha-Mula
Identify Dirgha-Mula by combining habit, leaf characters, flower or fruit details, location, and its family pattern. Do not rely on one feature alone.
- Look for a liana habit.
- Check the distinctive field mark: Small flowers, common hedgerow climber.
- Confirm flower colour: White.
- Confirm fruit type: Follicle.
- In season, compare flowering and fruiting time: August-December.
- In India, compare location records such as Karnataka, Kerala, Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu and nearby regions.
- Confirm it sits within the Apocynaceae family pattern, then compare close relatives before deciding it is Dirgha-Mula.
Plant Details
- Scientific name
- Ichnocarpus frutescens
- Genus
- Ichnocarpus
- Family
- Apocynaceae
- Habit
- Liana
- Habitat
- Deciduous forests and plains
- Habitat type
- Forest
- Native to
- Tropical Asia
- Distribution
- Himalayas, India, Sri Lanka, Southeast Asia to Australia
- Found in India
- Karnataka, Kerala, Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu, Uttarakhand, Telangana, West Bengal, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Himachal Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Meghalaya, Assam, Bihar, Chandigarh, Punjab, Andhra Pradesh, Arunachal Pradesh, Delhi, Goa, Haryana, Jammu & Kashmir, Jharkhand, Puducherry
- Flowering & fruiting
- August-December
- Conservation status
- Not Evaluated (NE)
Leaf characters
Typical of the Apocynaceae family — a field-mark hint, not measured for this exact species.
Flower & fruit characters
- Flower colour
- Whiterecorded
- Fruit type
- FolliclerecordedA dry pod that splits open along a single seam.“The fruit is a follicle which may be over 14 cm (5.5 in) long.” — Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0
Typical of the family
- Inflorescence
- Cyme
- Fruit
- Follicle
Characters marked “recorded” are for Dirgha-Mula itself; the rest are typical of the Apocynaceae family — flowering plants only.
About Dirgha-Mula
Slender Dog-Bane (Ichnocarpus frutescens) is a woody climber in the Apocynaceae family. In India it has been recorded in Karnataka, Kerala, Rajasthan and 21 other states. It grows in deciduous forests and plains. Flowering and fruiting run from August to December.
Apocynaceae
Dogbane family
Dirgha-Mula belongs to the Apocynaceae family.
The illustration represents the family — not necessarily this exact species.
Explore the Apocynaceae familySnap it. Know it.
Point your camera at Dirgha-Mula 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