• Family : SCROPHULARIACEAE
  (Figwort Family)
• Family (Hindi name) : BRAHMI FAMILY (ब्राह्मी फैमिली)
• Family (as per The APG System III) : OROBANCHACEAE
• Basionym : Buchnera gesnerioides Willd.
• Synonym(s) : Striga orobanchoides (R.Br. ex Endl.)
• Species Name (as per The Plant List) : Striga gesnerioides (Willd.) Vatke
• Common name : Purple witch
• Habit : Herb
• Habitat : Scrub jungles and deciduous forests
• Comments / notes : Grows on plains in loose soil and on rocks, often associated with Lepidagathes spp.; more robust after rains.
• Key identification features : Root Parasite
• Flower, Fruit : August-November
• Collector(s) Name : Raja K. Swamy
• Collection Date : 02/01/2016
• Collection Nos : HJCB-E-292
• Collection Locality : Mabbuchintalapalle, Kadapa district (AP)
• Distribution :
  • Andhra Pradesh : Anantapur district, Kurnool district, Guntur district, Kadapa district
  • Kerala : Kasaragod district, Kozhikode district, Malappuram district, Idukki district, Kottayam district
  • Maharashtra : Akola district
  • Tamil Nadu : Salem district, Dharmapuri district, Dindigul district
• World Distribution : Tropical Africa through Arabia, Pakistan, India, Sri Lanka
• Conservation Status : Not Evaluated (NE)
• Literature : Pullaiah et al., 2011 - Flora of Eastern Ghats Vol. 4; J.L.Ellis, 1990- Flora of Nallamalais Vol. 2; Matthew, K.M., The Flora of Tamil Nadu Carnatic, Vol.3 (1). Diocesan Press, Madras. 1983; 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=Striga gesnerioides. Downloaded on 3 April 2025.

Botanical Description

Herbarium Specimen(s)

Field Image(s)