Pleiospermium alatum (Wight & Arn.) Swingle

 
  • Family : RUTACEAE
    (Rue Or Citrus Family)
  • Family (Hindi name) : NIMBU FAMILY (नींबू फैमिली)
  • Family (as per The APG System III) : Rutaceae
  • Basionym : Limonia alata Wight & Arn.
  • Synonym(s) : Limonia alata Wight & Arn.; Anisifolium alatum (Wall. ex Wight & Arn.) Kuntze; Hesperethusa alata (Wall. ex Wight & Arn.) Alston; Naringi alata (Wall. ex Wight & Arn.) J.L.Ellis
  • Species Name (as per The IPNI) : Pleiospermium alatum (Wight & Arn.) Swingle
  • Vernacular name :
    • Kurunthumul thazhai (Tamil)
    • Kurtham (Malayalam)
  • Habit : Tree
  • Habitat : Tropical dry deciduous forests, foot hills; less in the plains to the coast
  • Comments / notes : Occasional in foothills of scrub jungles and in deciduous forests up to 900m.
  • Key identification features : A small unarmed pretty tree, with a brownish-grey or disclosed bark, cut dirty yellowish-brown. Leaves trifoliate; leaflets centre the largest, obovate, notched at the apex; petiole obovately winged. Flowers white, fragrant, in axillary or terminal cymes; petals 4-5, reflexed; stamens double the number of petals; filament flattened. Berry globose.
  • Flower, Fruit : January-July
  • Collector(s) Name : Arun Singh, Karuppusamy, Tilakar M
  • Collection Date : 17/06/2014
  • Collection Nos : HJCB-E-18
  • Collection Locality : Sirumalai Hills, Dindigal district (TN)
  • Distribution :
    • Karnataka : Mysuru district, Bengaluru Urban district, Bengaluru Rural district (FRLHT Campus)
    • Kerala : Idukki district
    • Tamil Nadu : Throughout Tamil Nadu hills
    • Andaman and Nicobar Islands : North and Middle Andaman,Ritchie\'s Archipelago taluk (Havelock Island),Long Island
  • Native : Andaman Islands, India, Sri Lanka
  • Exotic/Native : Native
  • World Distribution : Andaman Islands, India, Sri Lanka
  • Conservation Status : Not Evaluated (NE)
  • Literature :
    • Matthew, K.M., Flora of Tamil Nadu Carnatic, Vol.3 (1). Diocesan Press, Madras. 1983
    • Sasidharan, N. 2011. Flowering plants of Kerala. DVD, V 2, KFRI
    • Henry, Kumari & Chithra (1983). Flora of Tamil Nadu, India vol. 1.
    • Saldanha, C.J. (1996). Flora of Karnataka vol. 2. Oxford and IBH Publishing Co, New Delhi.
    • Parkinson, C.E. 1923. A Forest Flora of the Andaman Islands, Govt. of India, Shimla: 109
  • Read more :
  • Permalink : http://indiaflora-ces.iisc.ac.in/plants.php?name=Pleiospermium alatum
  • Citation : Sankara Rao, K., Deepak Kumar (2026). India Flora Online. http://indiaflora-ces.iisc.ac.in/plants.php?name=Pleiospermium alatum. Downloaded on 29 January 2026.

Botanical Description

Herbarium Specimen(s)

Field Image(s)

Habitat

Distribution District wise

India Distribution

World Distribution

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