Mahua / South-Indian Mahua
Madhuca longifolia var. longifolia
Also known as Mahua Tree
- Habit
- Tree
- Found in India
- Tamil Nadu, Rajasthan
- Flowering
- January-June
How to identify Mahua
Identify Mahua 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.
- Check the distinctive field mark: Flowers fermented into mahua liquor.
- Confirm leaf shape: Lanceolate (long, narrow, tapering to a point).
- Confirm leaf surface: Glabrous (smooth, hairless).
- In season, compare flowering and fruiting time: January-June.
- In India, compare location records such as Tamil Nadu, Rajasthan.
- Confirm it sits within the Sapotaceae family pattern, then compare close relatives before deciding it is Mahua.
Plant Details
- Scientific name
- Madhuca longifolia var. longifolia
- Genus
- Madhuca
- Family
- Sapotaceae
- Habit
- Tree
- Habitat
- Deciduous forests
- Habitat type
- Forest
- Native to
- India
- Distribution
- India, Sri Lanka, Myanmar, tropical Himalaya
- Found in India
- Tamil Nadu, Rajasthan
- Flowering & fruiting
- January-June
- Conservation status
- Not Evaluated (NE)
Leaf characters
- Leaf shape
- Lanceolate (long, narrow, tapering to a point)recorded
- Leaf surface
- Glabrous (smooth, hairless)recorded
Typical of the family
- Arrangement
- Alternate
Characters marked “recorded” are for Mahua itself; the rest are typical of the Sapotaceae family.
Flower & fruit characters
- Flower symmetry
- Actinomorphic (radially symmetrical)
- Inflorescence
- Cyme
- Fruit
- Berry
Typical of the Sapotaceae family — flowering plants only; individual species can differ.
Local Names
- Hindi
- Mahua महुआ
- Bengali
- Maul
- Tamil
- Kat-illipi
- Kannada
- ಇಪ್ಪೆ Ippe, ಹುನಗೆ Hunage
- Malayalam
- Illupa
- Marathi
- Mohwa
About Mahua
A member of the Sapotaceae family, South-Indian Mahua (Madhuca longifolia var. longifolia) is a tree. In India it has been recorded in Tamil Nadu and Rajasthan. It grows in deciduous forests. Flowering and fruiting run from January to June.
Sapotaceae
Sapodilla/Chicle family
Mahua belongs to the Sapotaceae family.
The illustration represents the family — not necessarily this exact species.
Explore the Sapotaceae familySnap it. Know it.
Point your camera at Mahua 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