Bridelia scandens (Roxb.) Willd. (EUPHORBIACEAE)
Description: Larger scandent shrubs; stem thorny, shoots brown pubescent. Leaves alternate, elliptic-oblong or obovate, 4.5 – 9 x 2.5 x 4.2 cm, rounded or subcordate at base, obtuse at apex, entire or undulate, fulvous-pubescent beneath; nerves 8-10 pairs. The flowers are arranged in an inflorescence of interrupted pseudospikes with leaves that gradually decrease in size, and they are unisexual. Calyx lobes 5. Corolla lobes 5. Stamens 5. Disc without bristles, greenish yellow. Fruit a drupe, globose, ca 0.4 cm across, turning black when ripe.
Flowering & Fruiting: October – January.
Distribution: India: Western peninsular India and N. Circaras. Common in deciduous to semi-evergreen forests of Western Ghats.
Uses: The decoction of the leaf and bark are used in gargles, in tooth-ache and mouth ulcers.