Chandni / East Indian Rosebay
Tabernaemontana divaricata
Also known as Pinwheel Flower
- Habit
- Tree
- Found in India
- Maharashtra, Kerala, Assam & more
- Flowering
- Throughout the year
Plant Details
- Scientific name
- Tabernaemontana divaricata
- Genus
- Tabernaemontana
- Family
- Apocynaceae
- Habit
- Tree
- Native to
- India
- Distribution
- Tropics of the World
- Found in India
- Maharashtra, Kerala, Assam, Tamil Nadu, West Bengal, Andhra Pradesh
- Flowering & fruiting
- Throughout the year
- Conservation status
- Not Evaluated (NE)
Leaf characters
- Arrangement
- Opposite
Recorded for Chandni.
Flower & fruit characters
Typical of the Apocynaceae family — flowering plants only; individual species can differ.
Local Names
- Hindi
- चांदनी Chandni, पिण्डपुष्प Pindpushp, पिण्डीतगर Pinditagar
- Nepali
- चाँदनी Chaandanee, कागते फूल Kaagate Phool, चाँदनी फूल
- Bengali
- বেলি Beli, জংলি টগর Jongali Tagar, কাঠ মালতি Katha Malati, জংলি টগর বা কাঠ মালতি
- Tamil
- நந்தியார்வட்டை Nandiarvattai, நந்தியாவட்டை
- Telugu
- గ్రంధితగరపు Grandhitagarapu, నందివర్ధనము Nandivardhanamu, నంద్యవారిఁయము Nandyavaraimu, నందివర్ధనం
- Kannada
- ಮದ್ದರಸ ಗಿಡ Maddarasa Gida, ನಂದಿಬಟ್ಟಲು Nandibattalu, ನಂದ್ಯಾವರ್ತ Nandyaavarta
- Malayalam
- നന്ത്യാർവട്ടം Nandyaarvattam, തഗരം Tagaram, നന്ത്യാർവട്ടം
- Marathi
- अनंत Ananta, नांदेट Nandeta, तगर Tagara
- Gujarati
- ચાંદની, ટગર
- Sinhala
- වතු සුද්ද
Chandni in India
Chandni is a tidy evergreen shrub covered in pure white pinwheel flowers — चांदनी Chandni (Hindi), நந்தியார்வட்டை Nandiarvattai (Tamil), గ్రంధితగరపు Grandhitagarapu (Telugu), ಮದ್ದರಸ ಗಿಡ Maddarasa Gida (Kannada), നന്ത്യാർവട്ടം Nandyaarvattam (Malayalam), अनंत Ananta (Marathi). Tabernaemontana divaricata is planted across Maharashtra, Kerala, Assam, Tamil Nadu, West Bengal, Andhra Pradesh in gardens and especially temple yards.
Uses
It is grown as an ornamental and temple-garden shrub, and its scentless (or faintly evening-scented) white flowers are used in worship and offerings. The plant has attributed uses in traditional medicine, but its milky sap marks it as a member of the dogbane family — ornamental, not edible.
How to Identify Chandni
A neat, much-branched evergreen with glossy, dark, pointed leaves and milky sap. The flowers are white, five-petalled and characteristically pinwheel-shaped, single or frilly-double, borne for much of the year.
Frequently Asked Questions
- What is East Indian Rosebay called in different Indian languages?
- चांदनी Chandni (Hindi); நந்தியார்வட்டை Nandiarvattai (Tamil); గ్రంధితగరపు Grandhitagarapu (Telugu); ಮದ್ದರಸ ಗಿಡ Maddarasa Gida (Kannada); നന്ത്യാർവട്ടം Nandyaarvattam (Malayalam); अनंत Ananta (Marathi); বেলি Beli (Bengali); ચાંદની (Gujarati).
- Why is chandni planted near temples?
- Its clean white pinwheel flowers are used in worship and offerings, and the tidy evergreen shrub flowers for much of the year, making it a popular temple-garden plant.
- Does crape jasmine have a scent?
- The flowers are largely scentless by day, sometimes faintly fragrant in the evening — it is grown more for its look than its smell.
Apocynaceae
Dogbane family
Chandni belongs to the Apocynaceae 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 Apocynaceae
View all Apocynaceae →Sources: GBIF — Tabernaemontana divaricata (India distribution & vernacular names) (CC BY 4.0) · iNaturalist — Tabernaemontana divaricata (regional names, India observations) (CC BY 4.0) · Wikipedia — Tabernaemontana divaricata (background/comprehension only) (CC BY-SA 4.0)