Kaada Nakkaare / False Sandalwood
Ximenia americana
- Habit
- Climbing shrub
- Found in India
- Telangana, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh & more
- Flowering
- January-July
How to identify Kaada Nakkaare
Identify Kaada Nakkaare by combining habit, leaf characters, flower or fruit details, location, and its family pattern. Do not rely on one feature alone.
- Look for a climbing shrub habit.
- Check the distinctive field mark: Sour plum-like edible fruit (false sandalwood).
- In season, compare flowering and fruiting time: January-July.
- In India, compare location records such as Telangana, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu.
- Confirm it sits within the Olacaceae family pattern, then compare close relatives before deciding it is Kaada Nakkaare.
Plant Details
- Scientific name
- Ximenia americana
- Genus
- Ximenia
- Family
- Olacaceae
- Habit
- Climbing shrub
- Habitat
- Banks of rivers
- Habitat type
- Wetland
- Distribution
- India, Sri Lanka, Africa, Myanmar, Indo-China, Thailand, Hainan, Malesia, N.Australia, Pacific Islands
- Found in India
- Telangana, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu
- Flowering & fruiting
- January-July
- Conservation status
- Not Evaluated (NE)
Local Names
- Tamil
- Chiru-illantai
- Kannada
- Kaada Nakkaare
About Kaada Nakkaare
False Sandalwood (Ximenia americana) is a climbing shrub in the Olacaceae family. In India it has been recorded in Telangana, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh and 1 other states. It grows in banks of rivers. Flowering and fruiting run from January to July.
Uses
In practice it is grown for parts that are eaten, long used in traditional medicine and planted as an ornamental. Those medicinal uses are traditional attributions, not medical advice. Parts of this plant are reported as poisonous — treat it as unsafe to eat and wash your hands after handling.
Olacaceae
Olax Family
Kaada Nakkaare belongs to the Olacaceae 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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