Ceylon Iron-Wood

Mesua ferrea

Also known as Indian Rose chestnut, Cobra's Saffron, Inagas tree, Ironwood, Mesua, Nagas tree, Penaga Lili

TreeoutdoorMedicinal

About Ceylon Iron-Wood

Mesua ferrea, the Ceylon ironwood, or cobra saffron, is a species in the family Calophyllaceae native to the Indomalayan realm. This slow-growing tree is named after the heaviness and hardness of its timber. It is widely cultivated as an ornamental for its graceful shape, grayish-green foliage with a striking pink to red flush of drooping young leaves, and its large, fragrant white flowers. It is the national tree of Sri Lanka, as well as the state tree of Mizoram and state flower of Tripura in India.

Description adapted from Wikipedia, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.

Plant Details

Scientific name: Mesua ferrea
Genus: Mesua
Family: CLUSIACEAE
Habit: Tree
Habitat: Evergreen forests, near streams
Distribution: India, Andaman and Nicobar (India), Bangladesh, Myanmar, Thailand, Cambodia, Laos, Vietnam
Flowering & fruiting: April-November
Conservation status: Not Evaluated (NE)

Local Names

Hindi: नागेसर Nagesar, नाग केसर
Nepali: नाग केशर Nag keshar
Bengali: নাগেশ্বর Nagesar, নাগেশ্বর
Tamil: நாக மரம் Nakamaram, புன்னாகம் Punnakam, Nagacuram
Telugu: నాగకేసరము Naga-kesaramu, నాగకేశరము, ఉప్ప చెట్టు
Kannada: ನಾಗಕೇಸರ Nagakesara, ನಾಗಸಂಪಿಗೆ Nagasampige, ನಾಗಸಂಪಿಗೆ
Malayalam: നാഗകേസരം Nagakesaram, Churuli, Nagapoovu
Marathi: नागचाफा Nag chafa, नागकेशर Nagkeshar, नागचाफा

Botanical family

Clusiaceae

Mangosteen/Garcinia family

Ceylon Iron-Wood belongs to the Clusiaceae family.

The illustration represents the family — not necessarily this exact species.

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