The Indian laburnum is the state flower of Kerala. The flowers are of ritual importance
in preparation of Kani during the Vishu festival of Kerala which falls in the month of
April.The tree has been depicted on a 20-rupee stamp.
Plant Description
Germalo is a miraculous herb that is of deciduous origin. It is usually medium-sized
growing to a height of 25 cm. It has alternate smooth, ovate-shaped, hairy, pinnate,
leaves, with 4-8 leaflets on either side, fruits in the form of pendulous,
cylindrical, indehiscent pods bearing 20-25 shiny black, seeds. The fruit pods are
mainly green when ripe and darn brown when they reach maturity, whereas the flowers
are usually bright yellow pentamerous and slightly zygomorphic in shape and occur in
bunches. The plant usually prefers a deep, well-drained, moderately fertile sandy
loamy soil, but can also grow on calcareous, red, and volcanic soils. The plant is
usually found growing in the rain forest, seasonally dry forest, woodland, riverine,
gallery forest, wooded grassland, on dry scrub, thickets and coastal areas, low
altitudes, gardens, parks, and even on urban lands.
Active constituent of GERMALO:
| Parts Used |
Chemical Constituents |
Uses |
|
Leaves
|
Heptacosanyl-5-hydroxypentadec-2-enoate, octacosan-5, and 8-diol
|
Against fever, malaria and rheumatism
|
|
Root
|
Anti-flatulent
|
Reduces the formation of gas in the alimentary canal
|
|
Fruit
|
Methanolic
|
Leukotriene inhibition
|
Uses
-
FOOD:
In India, flowers of the golden shower tree are sometimes eaten by people. It
was also eaten in 14th century France. The leaves have also been used to
supplement the diets of cattle, sheep, and goats fed with low-quality forages.
-
MEDICAL:
In Ayurvedic medicine, the golden shower tree is known as Aragvadha, meaning
“disease killer”. The fruit pulp is considered a purgative, and self-medication
or any use without medical supervision is strongly advised against in Ayurvedic
texts. Though it has been used in herbalism for millennia, little research has
been conducted in modern times, although it is an ingredient in some
mass-produced herbal laxatives. When used as such, it is known as “cassia pods”.
The Cassia fistula flower extract displayed an anti-aging properties when
introduced to the human skin fibroblast which can be applied in variety of
cosmetic applications as a nutritional sources and displays a ability to cause
hyper pigmentation which can be applied as a whitening agent.
Prepared by : Mr. Sandeep Verma
Checked by : Mr. Vikas Singh Chouhan
Verified by : Dr. Mahavir Chhajed
