Abroma augusta

Abroma augusta (L) Lt. (Sterculiaceae)

(now known as Ambroma L. f.)








Syn : Abroma augulata Lam., A. wheeleri Retz., A. fastuosum Gaertn., Theobroma augusta L.

English name: Devil's cotton.

Vernacular names: Asm : Bon kopashi; Hin and Ben: Ulat kambal; Tam: Sivapputtutti.

Trade name: Ulat kambal.

Traditional use: Seed: yields fatty oil, rich in linoleic acid and lowers cholesterol level in blood.

HOMOEOPATHY : used to control mind, different ailments of head, heart, eyes, ears, nose, face, mouth, throat, stomach, abdomen, urinary organs, male and female sexual organs, respiratory organs, neck, back and limbs, skin diseases, fever; to regulate appetite and sleep.

Modern use: Fresh and dried root-bark: used as uterine tonic and emmenagogue; regulates menstrual flow; Fresh juice from root- bark: useful in congestive and neuralgic forms of dysmenorrhoea, amenorrhoea, urinary trouble, bronchitis, broncho-pneumonia, carbuncles and poisonous boils; Leaf: used in diabetes, rheumatic pain and sinusitis.

Phytography : Shrub, branches downy; leaf simple, cordate, 10-15 cm by 10-12.5 cm, base 3-7 costate, repand-denticulate while the upper narrower leaves are entire, glabrescent above and tomentose below, petiolate, petioles 1.25-2.5 cm long, stipules linear, as long as the petiole, deciduous; flowers axillary, pedunculate, peduncle 3.5 cm long; capsules 5-angled, 5-winged, obpyramidal, thrice as long as the persistent calyx; seeds albuminous, numerous.

Distribution: Widely distributed in hotter parts of India up to 1500 m; Bangladesh, Pakistan and the adjacent countries.

Ecology and cultivation: Plant prefers hot and moist climate; sometimes planted, occasionally found as an escape.

Chemical contents: Plant: fixed oil, a little resinous matter, alkaloid (minute quantity) and water-soluble bases.