• Family : CUCURBITACEAE
  (Gourd Or Melon Family)
• Family (Hindi name) : KHARBOOZA FAMILY (खरबूजा फैमिली)
• Family (as per The APG System III) : CUCURBITACEAE
• Species Name (as per The Plant List) : Momordica charantia L.
• Common name : Bitter Gourd, Bitter melon, Balsam Apple, Balsam Pear, Carilla fruit, Karela
• Vernacular name : Karela , Kareli (Hindi); Haagalakai (Kannada); Paaharkaai, Pakal, Pakarkai (Tamil); Kakorra, Kakara (Telugu); Kalara, Kolera (Oria); Karavallaka (Sanskrit); Karale (Marathi); Kaippakka, Kattukayya, Paval, Pavakkai, Pantipavel (Malayalam)
• Habit : Climber
• Comments / notes : On foothills to 1300m, on thickets and slopes. Cultivated for its edible fruits.
• Flower, Fruit : Throughout the year
• Distribution :
  • Kerala : All districts of Kerala
  • Maharashtra : Akola district
• Native : Old World tropics
• World Distribution : Paleotropics
• Conservation Status : Not Evaluated (NE)
• Literature : Pullaiah et al., 2007 - Flora of Eastern Ghats Vol. 3; J.L.Ellis, 1987- Flora of Nallamalais 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 Similipahar (Similipal), Orissa; Matthew, K.M., Flora of Tamil Nadu Carnatic, Vol.3 (1). Diocesan Press, Madras. 1983; Kamble & Pradhan, 1988. Flora of Akola District, Maharashtra. Botanical Survey of India; Sasidharan, N. 2011. Flowering plants of Kerala. DVD, V 2, KFRI.
• Citation : Sankara Rao, K., Raja K Swamy, Deepak Kumar, Arun Singh R. and K. Gopalakrishna Bhat (2019). Flora of Peninsular India. http://peninsula.ces.iisc.ac.in/plants.php?name=Momordica charantia. Downloaded on 3 June 2024.

Botanical Description

Herbarium Specimen(s)

Line Drawings