Mallotus philippinensis, Muell, |
(Syn. Rottlera tinctoria) |
Family : Euphorbiaceae |
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Telugu Name : Senduri, Kumkuma |
General :
Sparingly found in Telangana area and the North Coastal Districts. It is identified by red-dotted glands on the backside of the leaf and red glands on the surface of the capsules. It is a good soil improver. It is sensitive to drought. It coppices well and produces root suckers.
Flowering :
Small flowers of brick red colour in terminal spikes appear in November to January.
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Fruiting : |
Fruits ripen from February to May. |
Morphology of the Fruit / Seed : |
Capsules 3-coccus, loculicidally 3 valved, 1.5 to 2 cms in diameter, densely covered with a scarlet powder. The seeds are minute, globose, black, smooth with a moderately thick brittle testa. |
Seed Collection and Storage : |
Fruits are collected in April and washed to clean the resin and dried in the sun. Then fruits are beaten to separate the seeds. Seeds have short viability. |
Seed Biology : |
No. of seeds per Kg. |
Germination percentage |
Plant percent |
No. of seedlings per Kg. of seed |
25,000 |
20 |
30 |
7000 |
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Pretreatment : |
Not required. |
Nursery Technique : |
Seeds are put in raised primary bed in April and a cover of hay is given over the bed. Shade and moisture are necessary in the early stages. Germination starts in 3 weeks time and continues for sometime. After a month, seedlings are transplanted to bigger bags and 15 months old seedlings are planted out. It grows slowly in the nursery.
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