Cleome monophylla L.

 
  • Family : CAPPARACEAE
    (Caper Family)
  • Family (Hindi name) : KARIL FAMILY (करील फैमिली)
  • Family (as per The APG System III) : Cleomaceae
  • Species Name (as per The IPNI) : Cleome monophylla L.
  • Common name : Spindle Pod
  • Vernacular name :
    • Menasinakase (Kannada)
    • Ellukku sakkalathi (Tamil)
    • Rango sorisho (Oria)
    • Cheruvela, Kattukadugu (Malayalam)
  • Habit : Herb
  • Habitat : Waste places and cultivated fields
  • Comments / notes : Common weed of agriculture fields; hills to 900m
  • Key identification features : Glandular pubescent herb, leaf simple
  • Flower, Fruit : Throughout the year
  • Distribution :
    • Kerala : All districts of Kerala
    • Maharashtra : Nagpur district, Amravati district, Aurangabad district, Chandrapur district, Nanded district, Pune district, Sindhudurg district
    • Odisha : Ganjam district
    • Tamil Nadu : All districts of Tamil Nadu
    • Madhya Pradesh : Hoshangabad district
    • Uttar Pradesh : Uttar Pradesh
  • World Distribution : India, Sri Lanka, Tropical Africa, Asia
  • Conservation Status : Not Evaluated (NE)
  • Literature :
    • Pullaiah et al., 2002 - Flora of Eastern Ghats Vol. 1
    • J.L.Ellis, 1987- Flora of Nallamalais Vol. 1
    • 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
    • N.P.Singh, 1988. Flora of Eastern Karnataka
    • Matthew, K.M., Flora of Tamil Nadu Carnatic, Vol.3 (1). Diocesan Press, Madras. 1983
    • Henry, Kumari & Chithra (1983). Flora of Tamil Nadu, India vol. 1
    • N.P. Sing & S. Karthikeyan 2000. Flora of Maharastra vol 1. Botanical survey of India, Govt. India
    • Sasidharan, N. 2011. Flowering plants of Kerala. DVD, V 2, KFRI.
  • Read more :
  • Permalink : http://indiaflora-ces.iisc.ac.in/plants.php?name=Cleome monophylla
  • Citation : Sankara Rao, K., Deepak Kumar (2026). India Flora Online. http://indiaflora-ces.iisc.ac.in/plants.php?name=Cleome monophylla. Downloaded on 30 January 2026.

Botanical Description

Herbarium Specimen(s)

Field Image(s)

Distribution District wise

India Distribution

World Distribution

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