Allophylus cobbe
Species of plant in the soapberry family
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Allophylus cobbe, commonly known as titberry or Indian allophylus, is a pantropical shrub in the family Sapindaceae with many uses in traditional medicine. It has a highly variable morphology throughout its range and may prove to be more than one species.
| Titberry, Indian allophylus | |
|---|---|
| |
Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| Clade: | Embryophytes |
| Clade: | Tracheophytes |
| Clade: | Spermatophytes |
| Clade: | Angiosperms |
| Clade: | Eudicots |
| Clade: | Rosids |
| Order: | Sapindales |
| Family: | Sapindaceae |
| Genus: | Allophylus |
| Species: | A. cobbe |
| Binomial name | |
| Allophylus cobbe | |
| Synonyms[2] | |
|
List
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Description
The described size of Allophylus cobbe varies greatly from place to place. In Australia it is known as a small to large shrub, and "never a tree".[3] In India however it is described as a "shrub to small tree",[4] while in Papua New Guinea it is described as a tree "up to 25 m high".[5] The compound leaves are usually trifoliolate but may have from one to five leaflets.[5][6] The petiole may be from 2 to 11 cm (0.8 to 4.3 in) long, the petiolules of the leaflets up to 1 cm (0.39 in) long.[3][4][7] The leaflet blades are acuminate, obovate or elliptic, with pointed tips and cuneate bases, and the margins may be crenate towards the distal end.[3][4] The leaf surfaces vary from glabrous to tomentose[3][4]
Many small actinomorphic flowers to 2 mm (0.1 in) diameter are borne on a 2–16 cm (0.8–6.3 in) long inflorescence, which is racemose and may be branched or unbranched.[4][6] The resulting fruit are a glabrous red drupe measuring from 4 to 16 mm (0.2 to 0.6 in) in diameter, containing a single large seed.[3][4][5][7]
Taxonomy
This species was first described in Species Plantarum by Carl Linnaeus in 1753, who gave it the name Rhus cobbe.[8] It was later renamed Allophylus cobbe by William Forsyth Junior and published in Botanical Nomenclator in 1794.[9]
The wide variation in appearance of this species lead some to believe that it is polyphyletic and that the genus is in need of taxonomic revision.[3][6]
Distribution and habitat
Allophylus cobbe has a pantropical distribution, being found in tropical (and some subtropical) areas of Africa, Asia, Oceania and the Americas.[3][10]
It grows in monsoon forest, littoral forest and on the margins of mangrove forest, often on sandy soils. In Australia it is recorded at elevations from sea level to around 500 m (1,600 ft).[3][4][7][11]
Uses and ecology
Titberry has many uses in Ayurveda and other traditional medicine practices.[12] The plant has been used as a mouthwash and to treat ulcers and wounds, bone fractures, rashes, bruises, diarrhoea, fever and stomach ache.[3][4][13][14]
The timber has been used for roofing and firewood, and for making bows, rafts and fish traps. The fruits are edible, and can also be used as fish poison.[3][15][16]
This species is the host plant for the moths Cleora injectaria and Gonodontis clelia, and for the butterfly Nacaduba pavana singapura.[15][16]
Gallery
Fruits in QLD, Australia, April 2022
Flowers - QLD, Australia, April 2022
Leaves and flowers at Periya, India, 2014
Trifoliate leaves
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