Herbarium JCB

Maesa indica (Roxb.) DC.

Family : MYRSINACEAE
(MYRSINE FAMILY)
Family (as per The Plant List) : Primulaceae
Species : Maesa indica
Synonym : Maesa perrottetiana A.DC.
Species Name (as per The Plant List) : Maesa indica (Roxb.) A. DC.
Vernacular name : Peria Unni, Thappachedi (Tam.)
Key identification features : A large shrub or a small tree. Leaves are elliptic or ovate-lanceolate, acute or acuminate at apex, dentate or serrate, glabrous above. Flowers are small, white in axillary simple or branched racemes. Calyx-tube adnate to the ovary. Corolla is shortly campanulate, 5-lobed. Stamens are 5. Ovary is half-inferior. Fruit is a berry, globose up to 5 mm across. Seeds are many.
Habit : Shrub
Flower, Fruit : October-February
Native : Indian sub-continent
Comments : Occasional on hills above 800 m on the slopes, in thickets or by shola border.
Conservation Status : Not Evaluated (NE)
Distribution Locality : B.R.Hills (Chamarajnagar district) (Karnataka State); Sirumalai Hills (Dindigul district), Vellore district, Shevaroy Hills (Salem district) (Tamil Nadu State); Puri district (Odisha State)
World Distribution : India, Sri Lanka, Myanmar, Malaysia, Lower Himalayas
Literature : Pullaiah et al., 2011 - Flora of Eastern Ghats Vol. 4; H.O. Saxena & M. Brahmam, 1995- Flora of Orissa Vol. 2; Matthew, K.M., The Flora of Tamil Nadu Carnatic, Vol.3 (1). Diocesan Press, Madras. 1983.
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=Maesa indica. Downloaded on 2 April 2025.