Pimenta dioica L.

 

Family: Myrtaceae

Synonym: Myrtus dioica L.

Vernacular name: Sarvasugandhi

Habit: Tree

Habitat: Plains to High Altitude, Cultivated

Distribution:     Native of Central America and Caribbean

Flowering and Fruiting: March-June

Key identification features: These trees have pale brown bark that is smooth and shiny, peeling off in strips. The leaves are simple, opposite, and elliptic in shape, The inflorescence consists of axillary cymes. Numerous stamens are present. The fruits are globoid, dark brown.

 Uses: Used very much in baking, mostly for making mincemeat and mixed pickling spice

Syzygium zeylanicum (L.) DC.

 

Family: Myrtaceae

Synonym: Acmena zeylanica (L.) Thwaites 

Vernacular name: Chaliyakkani, Kattuvayanilla, Poochappazham, Pula, Velutthakanali

Habit: Tree

Habitat: Banks of streams in evergreen forests, also in scrub jungles

Distribution: Madagascar and Indo-Malesia

Flowering and Fruiting: January-April

Key identification features: Trees that grow up to 10 m high having bark black. Leaves are simple, opposite. Flowers are bisexual, in axillary and terminal cymes, small, white. Fruit is a berry.

Uses: A black dye is obtained from the bark. The wood is used for implements. The wood is used for musical instruments, tool handles, furniture components etc.

Syzygium myrtifolium Walp.

 

 

Family: Myrtaceae

Synonym: Eugenia myrtifolia Roxb. nom. illeg.

Vernacular name: Red Lip

Habit: Tree

Habitat: Ridge forests, usually near the sea behind mangroves anjd also cultivated

Distribution: India, Bangladesh, Jawa, Malaya, Myanmar, Philippines,Thailand

Flowering and Fruiting:

Key identification features: It is a tree with a dense bushy crown, up to 20 m tall. Its opposite, stalked leaves have leaf blades that are elliptic to lanceolate, flowers are cream to white in colour Its spherical to ellipsoid fruits are dark purple or black berries.

Uses: An ethanol extract of the leaves has shown antimutagenic activity.It is often grown as a hedge.

Syzygium malaccense (L.) Merr. & L.M.Perry

 

Family: Myrtaceae

Synonym: Myrtus malaccensis (L.) Spreng. 

Vernacular name: Chuvannachamba, Pananeerjamba, Pomerac

Habit: Tree

Habitat: Moist, coastal areas and cultivted

Distribution: Native of Malaysia, cultivated in other parts of Tropical Asia

Flowering and Fruiting: February-June

Key identification features: Small to medium-sized, evergreen tree with Opposite leaves are oblong to elliptic. Reddish pink, pom-pom shaped flowers. Fleshy, ellipsoid fruits known as berries  are typically dark red with white or pink streaks, but can also be whitish or yellowish. Each fruit contains 1 round, brown seed.

Uses: A decoction of the bark is used against vaginal infection, while the root is used to treat itching. The root is also effective against dysentery and as a diuretic. The plant is also used as a remedy for diabetes and constipation. The fruits are consumed raw or cooked.

 

Syzygium caryophyllatum (L.) Alston

 

Family: Myrtaceae

Synonym: Myrtus caryophyllata L. 

Vernacular name: Cherujara, Pottinjaval, Shenjarel, Kani, Karinjara

Habit: Tree

Habitat: Evergreen and semi-evergreen forests, also in the plains

Distribution: India, Sri Lanka

Flowering and Fruiting: February-January

Key identification features: Trees up to 6m high with obovate-oblong leaves.

Flowers bisexual white, in terminal corymbose cymes; berry globose, black.

Uses: Fruits are widely used in folk medicine for diabetes. It is also used for digestion disorders including gas (flatulence), bowel spasms, stomach problems etc.

Psidium guajava L.

 

Family: Myrtaceae

Synonym: Myrtus guajava (L.) Kuntze 

Vernacular name: Adakkapazham, Koyya, Malakkapera, Pela, Pera

Habit: Tree

Habitat: Cultivated

Distribution: Originally from Tropical America; now naturalised in the tropics

Flowering and Fruiting: March-May

Key identification features: Small trees with smooth peeling bark. Leaves elliptic-oblong, hirsute when young, becoming glabrous; petioles short. Cymes axillary, 1-3-flowered. Petals white. Stamens many; Fruit is a berry.

Uses: Guava leaf is used for stomach and intestinal conditions, pain, diabetes, and wound healing. The fruit is used for high blood pressure.

Syzygium cumini (L.) Skeels

 

Family: Myrtaceae

Synonym: Eugenia cumini (L.) Druce 

Vernacular name: Hjaval, Kattuchampa, Naga, Naval, Njara, Perinnaral, Porinjara

Habit: A medium sized tree

Habitat: Evergreen forest

Distribution: Indo-Malesia to Australia

Flowering and fruiting: December-July

Key identification features: An evergreen tree reaching up to about 30 m and can live more than 100 years. The Leaves are smooth, glossy, elliptic to oblong or ovate. Flowers are greenish white in colour. The fruits are berry, oblong, black, juicy shining when thoroughly ripe.

Uses: Wood very hard and used for construction and making of agricultural implements. Used for the treatment of diabetes mellitus, blisters in mouth, cancer etc.

Syzygium mundagam (Bourd.) Chithra

 

Family: Myrtaceae

Synonym: Jambosa mundagam Gamble

Vernacular name: Kattuchamba,Kattuchampa,Mundagam

Habit: Medium Sized Tree

Habitat: Evergreen forest

Distribution: Southern western Ghats

Flowering and fruiting: February-March

Key identification feature: Trees with leaves simple, arranged in an opposite pattern, and may have stipules. The flowers are bisexual and are usually white. They grow in terminal, many-flowered corymbs. As for the fruit, it is an ovoid berry..

Uses: antimicrobial and anti-inflammatory effects, managing diabetes and promoting digestive health due to their hypoglycemic and gastroprotective properties.

Syzygium stocksii (Duthie) Gamble

 

Family: Myrtaceae

Synonym: Eugenia stocksii Duthie 

Vernacular name: Vallamanchi

Habit: Tree

Habitat: Terrestrial, Evergreen forests

Distribution: Southern western Ghats

Flowering and fruiting: March-June

Key identification feature: These trees grow up to 15 m in height, with elliptic leaves and slender branches. The small flowers appear in axillary cymes, and the fruit is a pink-purple berry.

Uses: Used in regulating blood sugar levels

Syzygium occidentale (Bourd.) Gandhi

 

 Family: Myrtaceae

Synonym: Jambosa occidentalis (Bourd.) Gamble 

Vernacular name: Attuchamba, Karinjara

Habit: Small tree

Habitat: Evergreen forests along banks of river

Distribution: Southern Western Ghats (Endemic)

Flowering and fruiting: March-April

Key identification feature: Large shrubs to small trees with simple, opposite leaves that are linear-lanceolate, tapering to a point at both ends. The terminal cymes are broad. There are 4 orbicular petals. The stamens are numerous, with white filaments. Fruit is a beery.

Uses: A root infusion is drunk for treatment of stomach-ache. Bark decoctions are used against stomach-ache, diarrhoea and malaria

Syzygium aqueum (Burm.f.) Alston

 Family - Myrtaceae

Synonym - Cerocarpus aqueus, Eugenia aquea, Jambosa aquea, Malidra aquea 

Vernacular names - Chamba, Jamba, Jambakka, Bell fruit, Watery rose-apple, Water apple, Water cherry

Habit - Tree

Habitat - Cultivated

Distribution - Malesia to North Australia

Flowering and Fruiting - December-June

Key Identification Features - This tree grows up to 6 meters in height and has tawny-brown bark. Its leaves are simple, opposite, and elliptic in shape. The leaves have an obtuse or acuminate apex and a cuneate or subcordate base. Lateral nerves are prominent, forming an intramarginal nerve near the margin. The bisexual white flowers appear in terminal or subterminal axillary cymes. The fruit is a berry, glossy and crowned by fleshy calyx segments. It contains juicy, watery flesh and globose seeds. 

Uses - The fruits are edible, used to make wine and pickles.