Thottachinungi / Heart-Leaf Balsam
Impatiens cordata
- Habit
- Herb
- Found in India
- Kerala, Tamil Nadu
- Flowering
- December-March
How to identify Thottachinungi
Identify Thottachinungi by combining habit, leaf characters, flower or fruit details, location, and its family pattern. Do not rely on one feature alone.
- Look for a herb habit.
- Check the distinctive field mark: Heart-shaped leaves.
- Confirm leaf arrangement: Alternate.
- Confirm leaf shape: Ovate.
- Confirm flower colour: Pink.
- In season, compare flowering and fruiting time: December-March.
- In India, compare location records such as Kerala, Tamil Nadu.
Plant Details
- Scientific name
- Impatiens cordata
- Genus
- Impatiens
- Family
- Balsaminaceae
- Habit
- Herb
- Habitat
- Near water courses in Evergreen forests
- Found in India
- Kerala, Tamil Nadu
- Flowering & fruiting
- December-March
- Conservation status
- Not Evaluated (NE)
Leaf characters
- Leaf arrangement
- AlternaterecordedOne leaf per node, arranged in a spiral or zigzag up the stem.
- Leaf shape
- OvaterecordedEgg-shaped, broader near the base.“The leaves are alternate and have an ovate to cordate shape.” — Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Leaf surface
- Glabrous (smooth, hairless)recorded
Typical of the family
Characters marked “recorded” are for Thottachinungi itself; the rest are typical of the Balsaminaceae family.
Flower & fruit characters
- Flower colour
- Pinkrecorded
Typical of the family
- Flower symmetry
- Zygomorphic (bilaterally symmetrical)
- Inflorescence
- Solitary
- Fruit
- Capsule
Characters marked “recorded” are for Thottachinungi itself; the rest are typical of the Balsaminaceae family — flowering plants only.
Local Names
- Malayalam
- Thottachinungi
About Thottachinungi
Heart-Leaf Balsam (Impatiens cordata) is a herb in the Balsaminaceae family. In India it has been recorded in Kerala and Tamil Nadu. It grows in near water courses in Evergreen forests. Flowering and fruiting run from December to March.
Balsaminaceae
Balsam/Touch-me-not family
Thottachinungi belongs to the Balsaminaceae 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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