Garcinia morella is a species of tree in the family Clusiaceae found in India, and Sri Lanka.
Common names
Description
Trees are up to 12 m tall. Bark is smooth, and dark brown in color; blaze white.
Leaves simple, opposite, decussate; petiole 0.6-1.5 cm long, canaliculate, sheathing at base, glabrous; lamina 6.5-15 x 3.5-8 cm, usually elliptic, sometimes narrow obovate, apex acute to acuminate, base attenuate; coriaceous or subcoriaceous, glabrous; secondary_nerves 6-8 pairs; tertiary_nerves obscure.
Flowers show inflorescence and are dioecious; male flowers in fascicles, axillary; female flowers larger than male, solitary, axillary.
Uses
Ripe fruits can be eaten but they are very acidic. Just like other garcinia varieties such as
kokum (which is prevalent in the Indian west coast) or garcinia pedunculata, the fruit can be preserved by slicing into thin pieces and then drying under sun. It can be made into pickles.
Bodo people cook the unripe fruit as vegetable with fish. A
chutney can be made by boiling the fruit. In
Assam, dried and preserved slices are added to black green pulses to make a popular slightly acidic curry. Dried up fruit slices are valued as a traditional remedy for
dysentery.
In
Ayurveda the fruits are used in the treatment of dysentery, gastritis, etc. and is said to have anti inflammatory properties.
[Tamala – Garcinia morella Uses, Dose, Research at http://easyayurveda.com/2015/04/23/tamala-garcinia-morella-uses-dose-research/] When the bark is cut it exudes a yellow resin called
gamboge that is used in food, paints and medicines. It can be used as a rootstock for the
mangosteen (Garcinia mangostana).
[Useful Tropical Plants: Garcinia morella at http://tropical.theferns.info/viewtropical.php?id=Garcinia+morella]
In Malnad region of Karnataka, Tirtahalli and Chikkamagalore this is widely used in name of 'odduli', especially in fish recipes. Odduli is prepared by boiling the fruit to get a thick black liquid which can be stored for years without adding preservatives.
Chemistry
The
gaudichaudione A,
gaudichaudione B,
gaudichaudione C,
gaudichaudione D,
gaudichaudione E,
gaudichaudione F,
gaudichaudione G,
gaudichaudione H, gaudichaudiic acid A, B, C, D, E,
morellic acid and
forbesione from
G. gaudichaudii.
[Novel cytotoxic polyprenylated xanthonoids from Garcinia gaudichaudii (Guttiferae). Shu-Geng Cao, Valerie H. L. Sng, Xiao-Hua Wu, a, Keng-Yeow Sim, B. H. K. Tan, J. T. Pereira and S. H. Goh, Tetrahedron, Volume 54, Issue 36, 3 September 1998, Pages 10915-10924, ]
See also
