Terminalia elliptica

Botanical Name – Terminalia elliptica

Common Name – Raktarjun (Sanskrit), Ain, Asana, Saaj, Saja, Athna, Sadora, Miriya, Barsaaj (Hindi), Ain (Marathi), Sadad (Gujrati)

Distribution

• Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, West Bengal, Madhya Pradesh, Orrisa, Maharashtra, Goa, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Kerala

Habit

• Medium sized deciduous tree
• Moderate growth
  
  

Habitat

• Dry and moist deciduous forests
  
  

Specific Properties

• Drought tolerant
• Preferred for soil regeneration and habitat restoration
• Good to plant on bunds for wind break and green manure
• Unscientific tapping of gum, illegal commercial exploitation has resulted in critically low abundance and plant is now endangered in some states of India (e.g. the Aravalli hills of Rajasthan). Tapping of gum is banned by Forest Department for about two decades in Madhya Pradesh, India
• Bark is fire-resistant
• Water stored in the stem is often tapped and used as a source of potable water in the summer by forest dwelling communities.
  
  

Ecology

• Attract lots of Honeybees (flower pollination)
• Birds feed on seeds and act as dispersal agents
• The leaves are used as food by Antheraea paphia (silkworms), which produces tassar silk
• Larval host plant for Tricolur Pied Flat (Coladenia Indrani), Large Oakblue (Arhopala amantes), Centaur Oakblue (Arhopala centaurus), Common Gem (Poritia hewitsoni), Redspot (Zesius chrysomallus)
  
  

Uses

• Gum used in pharma, health care, food, cosmetics, paper-textile, composite fibre, leather industries and industrial waste treatment. It is in great demand in global market. Preferred over synthetic polymers due to exceptional properties of gum
• 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

• The bark is used medicinally against diarrhoea
• The bark and especially the fruit yield pyrogallol and catechol to dye and tan leather.
• Seeds are edible, eaten roasted
• Fibre from tree is used to make cloth and ropes
• The wood is used for furniture, plywood, boat-building, railway sleeper, and for musical instruments
• The foliage makes a good cattle fodder
• The tree yields adhesive gum
  
  

Propagation

• Seeds
• Cuttings