Sterculia urens

Botanical Name – Sterculia urens

Common Name – Ghost tree, Gum Karaya, Kulu, Katira, Karay, Garlu, Tabai (Hindi), Bhutya (Marathi), Kempudale (Kannada), Kadaya (Marathi)

Distribution – Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala, Odisha, Assam, Bihar, Jharkhand, Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Rajasthan, Gujarat

Habit

• Medium to large deciduous tree
• Moderate growth
  
  

Habitat  

• Dry, tropical deciduous forests, rocky hilly areas
  
  

Specific Properties

• Drought tolerant
• Preferred for soil reclamation and habitat restoration
• Good to plant on bunds for wind break
  
  

Ecology

• Attract lots of Honeybees
• Birds feed on seeds
• Larval Host plant of Tricolour Pied Flat, Common Red Flash and Short-banded Sailer
  
  

Uses

• Gum used in pharma, health care, food, cosmetics, paper-textile, composite fibre, leather industries and industrial waste treatment
• Gum is used as stabilizer, emulsifier, and thickener in processed foods, baking, and dairy industries as denture adhesive, thickening agent for printing dyes, in cosmetics
• Gum is laxative and used for treatment of throat infections, constipation, diarrhoea, body swelling, wound healing

• Seeds are edible, eaten roasted and seed oil is used for soap making
• Fibre from tree is used to make cloth and ropes
• A strong fibre is made from its bark
• Its leaves are useful as fodder for livestock
  
  

Propagation

• Seeds