Family : Guttiferae
English : Iron wood tree
Hindi : Nagakesar
Gujarati : Nagkesar
Sanskrit : Nagapushpa
Part used : Flower
Family : Guttiferae
English : Iron wood tree
Hindi : Nagakesar
Gujarati : Nagkesar
Sanskrit : Nagapushpa
Part used : Flower
Botanical Description: A medium sized, glabrous evergreen tree, 18-30m in height and reddish brown bark which peels off in thin flakes; leaves simple, opposite, thick. Lanceolate, coriaceous, covered with waxy bloom underneath, red when young, acute or acuminate, nerves inconspicuous, flowers white very fragrant, axillar or terminal, solitary or in pairs, stamens very numerous, golden yellow, much shorter than the petals; fruits ovoid with a conical point surrounded by the enlarged sepals, seeds 1-4 angular, dark brown, smooth. Flowering and fruiting from Febuary to July.
It is found throughout India.
Rasa : Katu, Tikta, Kasaya
Guna : Ruksa, Laghu
Virya : Usna
Vipaka : Katu
Karma : Urdhajatrugatarogahara,
Kaphahara, Varnya, Vastivatamayghna
Modern Pharmacological Action: The tested Nagkesar oil showed a remarkable antimicrobial activity on microbes Escherichia coli, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Bacillus subtilis and Staphylococcus aureus. The results also revealed that the crude oil has the best antimicrobial effect on S. aureus, even better than all the standard antibiotics.