Herbarium JCB

Saraca asoca (Roxb.) Willd.

Family : FABACEAE
(PEA OR BEAN FAMILY)
Family (as per The Plant List) : Leguminosae
Subfamily : Caesalpinioideae
Species : Saraca asoca
Basionym : Jonesia asoca Roxb.
Species Name (as per The Plant List) : Saraca asoca (Roxb.) Willd.
Common name : Asoka, True Asoka, Sita Asoka, Sesbania Pea, Canicha, Prickly Sesban
Vernacular name : Ashoka, Ashok (Hin.); Ashokada mara, Kengali mara (Kan.); Asoka, Asavu (Tam.); Kankeli, Asokamu, Asokam, Vanjulumu (Tel.); Oshoko, Ashok (Ori.); Ashoka (San.)
Key identification features : A medium-sized handsome evergreen tree with short trunk and spreading canopy. Leaves are large, compound, alternate with strap-like leaflets. Flowers are 1.5 to 2 cm long, attractive and clustered in axillary inflorescences. Fruit is a few-seeded oblong pod. Bark is pink-brown, relatively smooth, lenticellate and irregularly fissured.
Habit : Tree
Flower, Fruit : March-October
Comments : Occasionally in valleys near streams of semi-evergreen to evergreen forests.
Conservation Status : Vulnerable (VU)
Distribution Locality : Bellary district (Karnataka State); Tirumala Hills (Chittoor district), Palakonda Hills (Kadapa district), Srikakulam district, West Godavari district, East Godavari district, Visakhapatnam district (Andhra Pradesh State); Keonjhar district, Mayurbhanj district, Khurda district, Angul district, Dhenkanal district, Puri district (Odisha State)
World Distribution : India, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and Myanmar (west of Irrawaddy River). Introduced and cultivated in Malaysia
Literature : Pullaiah et al., 2001 - Flora of Eastern Ghats Vol. 2; H.O. Saxena & M. Brahmam, 1994- Flora of Orissa Vol. 1 ; R. S. Rao et al., 1986 - Flora of West Godavari District ; R. S. Rao and S. H. Sreeramulu, 1986 - Flora of Srikakulam District ; H. O. Saxena and M. Brahmam, 1989 - The Flora of Similipal, Orissa; IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2014.1. ; S. NOORUNNISA BEGUM *, K. RAVIKUMAR, D. K. VED. 'Asoka' - an important medicinal plant, its market scenario and conservation measures in India. CURRENT SCIENCE, VOL. 107, NO. 1, 10 JULY 2014
Citation : Sankara Rao, K., Arun Singh R., Deepak Kumar, Raja K Swamy and Navendu Page (2016). Digital Flora of Eastern Ghats. http://easternghats.ces.iisc.ernet.in/plants.php?name=Saraca asoca. Downloaded on 2 April 2025.