Chiphal / Indian Prickly Ash
Zanthoxylum rhetsa
- Habit
- Tree
- Found in India
- Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Kerala & more
- Flowering
- March-November
Plant Details
- Scientific name
- Zanthoxylum rhetsa
- Genus
- Zanthoxylum
- Family
- Rutaceae
- Habit
- Tree
- Habitat
- Evergreen and moist deciduous forests
- Habitat type
- Forest
- Distribution
- India, Sri Lanka, Myanmar, Thailand, Malay Peninsula, Java, Philippines, Moluccas, S. Papua
- Found in India
- Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Andaman & Nicobar Islands, Karnataka, Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Goa, Meghalaya, Puducherry, Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand
- Flowering & fruiting
- March-November
- Conservation status
- Not Evaluated (NE)
Leaf characters
- Leaf type
- Pinnately compoundrecordedLeaflets are arranged in rows along a central stalk, like a feather.
- Leaf shape
- OvaterecordedEgg-shaped, broader near the base.“The leaves are 140–230 mm (5.5–9.1 in) long and pinnate, with nine to twenty three egg-shaped to elliptical leaflets.” — Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0
Typical of the family
- Arrangement
- Alternate
Characters marked “recorded” are for Chiphal itself; the rest are typical of the Rutaceae family.
Flower & fruit characters
- Flower arrangement
- PaniclerecordedA branching cluster of clusters.“The flowers are arranged on the ends of branchlets, sometimes also in , in panicles up to 150 mm (5.9 in) long.” — Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Fruit type
- CapsulerecordedA dry fruit from a fused ovary that splits open at maturity to release seeds.
Typical of the family
- Flower symmetry
- Actinomorphic (radially symmetrical)
- Inflorescence
- Cyme
- Fruit
- Berry
Characters marked “recorded” are for Chiphal itself; the rest are typical of the Rutaceae family — flowering plants only.
Local Names
- Tamil
- Iraccai, Iraccaimaram, Karuppuk kaliyana murunkai
- Telugu
- morapu, raccamanu, racha
- Kannada
- ಜುಮ್ಮಿ Jummi, Jummina, ಅರಮಾದಲ
- Malayalam
- Kothumurikku, Mullilavu, Mullilam
- Marathi
- Chiphal, Chirphala, Kokli
About Chiphal
A member of the Rutaceae family, Indian Prickly Ash (Zanthoxylum rhetsa) is a tree. In India it has been recorded in Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Kerala and 9 other states. It grows in evergreen and moist deciduous forests. Flowering and fruiting run from March to November.
Uses
Locally it is grown for parts that are eaten.
Rutaceae
Citrus/Rue family
Chiphal belongs to the Rutaceae family.
The illustration represents the family — not necessarily this exact species.
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