Mehendi / Henna
Lawsonia inermis
Also known as Egyptian Priven, Cypress Shrub, Camphire, Samphire
- Habit
- Shrub
- Found in India
- Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh & more
- Flowering
- December-May
Plant Details
- Scientific name
- Lawsonia inermis
- Genus
- Lawsonia
- Family
- Lythraceae
- Habit
- Shrub
- Habitat
- Grown as hedge plant
- Habitat type
- Cultivated
- Distribution
- Central Asia, India; cultivated throughout warm tropics
- Found in India
- Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Kerala, Rajasthan
- Flowering & fruiting
- December-May
- Conservation status
- Not Evaluated (NE)
Leaf characters
- Arrangement
- Opposite
Recorded for Mehendi.
Flower & fruit characters
Typical of the Lythraceae family — flowering plants only; individual species can differ.
Local Names
- Hindi
- Mehendi मेहेंदी, Mehendi, Mehndi
- Nepali
- मेहन्दीको बोट
- Bengali
- Mehedi, মেহেদি, মেহেদী
- Tamil
- Marithondi, Marudaani, மருதோன்றி
- Telugu
- గోరింట, గోరింటాకు
- Kannada
- ಗೋರಂಟಿ Goranti, ಮದರಂಗಿ Madarangi, ಮದರಂಗ Madaranga, Gorante
- Malayalam
- Mailanchi, മൈലാഞ്ചി, Henna
- Marathi
- मेंदी Mendi, Mendhi, मेंदी
- Sanskrit
- Mendika
- Gujarati
- Medi
- Odia
- Benjati
- Punjabi
- Mehndri
- Urdu
- Mehndri, Henna
Mehendi in India
Henna is the shrub behind India's mehndi — Mehendi मेहेंदी (Hindi), Marithondi (Tamil), గోరింట (Telugu), ಗೋರಂಟಿ Goranti (Kannada), Mailanchi (Malayalam), मेंदी Mendi (Marathi). Lawsonia inermis is grown across Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Kerala, Rajasthan, with Rajasthan's Sojat a famous henna-growing centre, and is also planted as a fragrant hedge.
Uses
Its dried, powdered leaves stain skin and hair a rich red-brown and are central to weddings, festivals and everyday hair colouring across India. The fragrant flowers are used in perfumery, and the plant has attributed cooling uses in tradition.
How to Identify Mehendi
A much-branched shrub, sometimes spine-tipped, with small, smooth, opposite oval leaves. It carries dense clusters of small, sweetly fragrant cream-white to pink flowers, followed by tiny round capsules. The leaves are the source of the dye.
Frequently Asked Questions
- What is Henna called in different Indian languages?
- Mehendi मेहेंदी (Hindi); Marithondi (Tamil); గోరింట (Telugu); ಗೋರಂಟಿ Goranti (Kannada); Mailanchi (Malayalam); मेंदी Mendi (Marathi); Mehedi (Bengali); Medi (Gujarati); Benjati (Odia); Mehndri (Punjabi); Mendika (Sanskrit).
- Which part of henna is used for mehndi?
- The leaves are dried and ground to a powder; the lawsone pigment in them stains skin and hair the characteristic red-brown.
- Where is henna grown in India?
- It is grown across the drier regions, with Sojat in Rajasthan especially renowned as a major henna-producing centre.
Lythraceae
Loosestrife/Henna family
Mehendi belongs to the Lythraceae family.
The illustration represents the family — not necessarily this exact species.
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Common plant problems
All plant problem & care guides →More in Lythraceae
View all Lythraceae →Sources: GBIF — Lawsonia inermis (India distribution & vernacular names) (CC BY 4.0) · iNaturalist — Lawsonia inermis (regional names, India observations) (CC BY 4.0) · Wikipedia — Lawsonia inermis (background/comprehension only) (CC BY-SA 4.0)