PROSEA Handbook Number
12(3): Medicinal and poisonous plants 3
Taxon
Butea monosperma (Lamk) Taub.
This article should be read together with the article on the genus: Butea in the Handbook volume indicated above in this database.
Protologue
Engl. & Prantl, Nat. Pflanzenfam. 3(3): 366 (1894).
Synonyms
Butea frondosa Roxb. ex Willd. (1802).
Vernacular Names
Flame of the forest (En). Indonesia: palasa (general), plasa (Javanese, Sundanese). Burma (Myanmar): pouk-pen. Cambodia: char. Laos: (kô'k) chan. Thailand: kwaao (northern), thong kwaao, thong thammachaat (central). Vietnam: l[aa]m v[oos], gi[ef]ng gi[ef]ng.
Distribution
Nepal, throughout India, Sri Lanka, Burma (Myanmar), Indo-China, Thailand and Java; cultivated in tropical Asia and Africa, and in some subtropical regions.
Uses
A red exudate (gum) from the bark is known as 'Butea gum' or 'Bengal kino'. It can be used as a powerful astringent and is applied in cases of diarrhoea. In Indo-China it is an ingredient of dressings applied to boils, sores, ulcers and adenitis. The bark is credited with anti-ulcer and antitumour properties, and the root bark is used as an aphrodisiac, analgesic, oestrogenic and anthelmintic. The leaves show some antimicrobial activity. The seeds are reputed to work as an anthelmintic, and also have bactericidal and fungicidal effects. The flowers are used in the treatment of liver disorders and credited with astringent, diuretic and anti-inflammatory activities. In India Butea monosperma is an important host for the lac insect (Laccifer lacca), which produces shellac. The tree is much planted as an ornamental because it flowers with a profusion of bright orange, rarely sulphurous flowers. A bright yellow to deep orange-red dye can be prepared from the flowers, especially used for dyeing silk. The coarse, fibrous material obtained from the inner bark is used for rough cordage, for caulking boats and for making paper. The wood is sometimes used for utensils and construction, more commonly for fuel. Butea monosperma is a valuable species for reclaiming saline soils.
Observations
A small to medium-sized, deciduous tree 5—12(—20) m tall; leaves with petiole up to 20 cm long and leaflets up to 27 cm x 26 cm; inflorescence with early caducous bracts; flowers 4—8 cm long, bright orange-red, more rarely yellow, pedicel c. 2 times longer than calyx; fruit up to 24 cm x 6 cm, covered with short brown hairs, pale yellowish-brown or grey when ripe. Butea monosperma usually grows in open grassland, but also in mixed forest, in Java in relatively dry regions in the east, up to 1500 m altitude.
Image
![](./image/0009342.jpg) | Butea monosperma (Lamk) Taub. - 1, flowering twig; 2, fruits |
Selected Sources
[9]Agarwal, A.K. et al., 1997. Management of giardiasis by a herbal drug 'Pippali Rasayana': a clinical study. Journal of Ethnopharmacology 56(3): 233—236.
[70]Bandara, B.M., Kumar, N.S. & Samaranayake, K.M., 1989. An antifungal constituent from the stem bark of Butea monosperma. Journal of Ethnopharmacology 25(1): 73—75.
[90]Bhargava, S.K., 1986. Estrogenic and postcoital anticonceptive activity in rats of butin isolated from Butea monosperma seed. Journal of Ethnopharmacology 18(1): 95—101.
[121]Burkill, I.H., 1966. A dictionary of the economic products of the Malay Peninsula. Revised reprint. 2 volumes. Ministry of Agriculture and Co- operatives, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Vol. 1 (A—H) pp. 1—1240, Vol. 2 (I— Z) pp. 1241—2444.
[181]Council of Scientific and Industrial Research, 1948—1976. The wealth of India: a dictionary of Indian raw materials & industrial products. 11 volumes. Publications and Information Directorate, New Delhi, India.
[250]Flore du Cambodge, du Laos et du Viêtnam [Flora of Cambodia, Laos and Vietnam] (various editors), 1960—. Muséum National d'Histoire Naturelle, Paris, France.
[455]Kasture, V.S., Chopde, C.T. & Deshmukh, V.K., 2000. Anticonvulsive activity of Albizzia lebbeck, Hibiscus rosa-sinensis and Butea monosperma in experimental animals. Journal of Ethnopharmacology 71(1—2): 65—75.
[542]Lemmens, R.H.M.J. & Wulijarni-Soetjipto, N. (Editors), 1991. Plant Resources of South-East Asia No 3. Dye and tannin-producing plants. Pudoc, Wageningen, the Netherlands. 196 pp.
[617]Mengi, S.A. & Deshpande, S.G., 1995. Comparative evaluation of Butea frondosa and flurbiprofen for ocular anti-inflammatory activity in rabbits. Journal of Pharmacy and Pharmacology 47(12A): 997—1001.
[731]Perry, L.M., 1980. Medicinal plants of East and Southeast Asia. Attributed properties and uses. MIT Press, Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States & London, United Kingdom. 620 pp.
[753]Prashanth, D., Asha, M.K., Amit, A. & Padmaja, R., 2001. Anthelmintic activity of Butea monosperma. Fitoterapia 72(4): 421—422.
[815]Sanjappa, M., 1989. Revision of the genera Butea Roxb. ex Willd. and Meizotropis Voigt (Fabaceae). Bulletin of the Botanical Survey of India 29(1—4): 199—225.
[965]Verdcourt, B., 1979. A manual of New Guinea legumes. Botany Bulletin No 11. Office of Forests, Division of Botany, Lae, Papua New Guinea. 645 pp.
Correct Citation of this Article
Raharni, 2003. Butea monosperma (Lamk) Taub.. In: Lemmens, R.H.M.J. and Bunyapraphatsara, N. (Editors): Plant Resources of South-East Asia No 12(3): Medicinal and poisonous plants 3. PROSEA Foundation, Bogor, Indonesia. Database record:
prota4u.org/prosea