Akra / Karun Kurinji
Strobilanthes heyneanus
- Habit
- Shrub
- Found in India
- Karnataka, Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu & more
- Flowering
- October-December
How to identify Akra
Identify Akra by combining habit, leaf characters, flower or fruit details, location, and its family pattern. Do not rely on one feature alone.
- Look for a shrub habit.
- Check the distinctive field mark: Mass-flowers gregariously at long intervals (kurinji).
- Confirm leaf surface: Pubescent (softly hairy).
- Confirm flower colour: Purple.
- In season, compare flowering and fruiting time: October-December.
- In India, compare location records such as Karnataka, Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Kerala.
- Confirm it sits within the Acanthaceae family pattern, then compare close relatives before deciding it is Akra.
Plant Details
- Scientific name
- Strobilanthes heyneanus
- Genus
- Strobilanthes
- Family
- Acanthaceae
- Habit
- Shrub
- Habitat
- Margins of shola forests and grasslands
- Native to
- India
- Distribution
- India, Sri Lanka
- Found in India
- Karnataka, Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Kerala
- Flowering & fruiting
- October-December
- Conservation status
- Not Evaluated (NE)
Leaf characters
- Leaf surface
- Pubescent (softly hairy)recorded
Typical of the family
- Arrangement
- Opposite
Characters marked “recorded” are for Akra itself; the rest are typical of the Acanthaceae family.
Flower & fruit characters
- Flower colour
- PurplerecordedPurple or violet
Typical of the family
- Flower symmetry
- Zygomorphic (bilaterally symmetrical)
- Inflorescence
- Spike
- Fruit
- Capsule
Characters marked “recorded” are for Akra itself; the rest are typical of the Acanthaceae family — flowering plants only.
Local Names
- Marathi
- अकरा Akra, अकरा
About Akra
Karun Kurinji (Strobilanthes heyneanus) belongs to the Acanthaceae family, where it grows as a shrub. In India it has been recorded in Karnataka, Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu and 1 other states. It grows in margins of shola forests and grasslands. Flowering and fruiting run from October to December.
Acanthaceae
Acanthus family
Akra belongs to the Acanthaceae 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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