Dasapushpam

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Dasapushpam ("dasha" meaning ten in Sanskrit and "pushpam" meaning flowers), or the ten sacred flowers of Kerala, are ten herbs traditionally significant to Keralites, the people of Kerala, India. These herbs are found almost everywhere in Kerala, especially in the Western Ghats region.[1] They are used for decorative purposes, such as making the floral carpet pookalam during festivals like Onam.[2] These ten flowers are also used to prepare folk medicines in Kerala.[3]

List[]

The ten plants are:[1]

Common name Binomial name Malayalam name Image
Slender dwarf morning-glory Evolvulus alsinoides[4] കൃഷ്ണക്രാന്തി (Krishnakranthi) Dwarf Morning-glory (Evolvulus alsinoides) in Hyderabad W IMG 7978.jpg
Indian doab or Bahama grass Cynodon dactylon കറുക (Karuka) Cynodon dactylon.jpg
lilac tasselflower Emilia sonchifolia മുയൽ ചെവിയൻ (Muyal cheviyan) Emilia sonchifolia 4.jpg
Morning glory Ipomoea sepiaria[5] തിരുതാളി (Thiruthaali) Thiruthaali.jpg
Mountain knotgrass Aerva lanata ചെറുള (cheroola) Aerva lanata in Bhongir AP W I2 IMG 3064.jpg
Golden eye-grass Curculigo orchioides നിലപ്പന (Nilappana) Curculigo orchioides.jpg
False daisy Eclipta alba കയ്യുണ്യം(Kayyunniam) Eclipta prostrata in AP W2 IMG 9785.jpg
Little ironweed Cyanthillium cinereum[6] പൂവാംകുരുന്നില (Poovaamkurunnila) Cyanthillium cinereum - flower.JPG
Biophytum sensitivum Biophytum sensitivum മുക്കുറ്റി (Mukkutti) മുക്കുറ്റിപ്പൂവ്‌.JPG
Balloon plant Cardiospermum halicacabum ഉഴിഞ്ഞ (Uzhinja) Cardiospermum halicacabum 04.jpg

Although the Malayalam names refer to the flowers, the medicinal value lies in the leaves in most cases.

Ipomoea sepiaria[]

Extracts of Ipomoea sepiaria leaves feature antimicrobial activity. The extract was tested on bacteria including Staphylococcus aureus, Klebsiella pneumoniae, Escherichia coli and Pseudomonas aeruginosa.[7]

External links[]

References[]

  1. ^ a b K. Jiny Varghese; J. Anila; R. Nagalekshmi; S. Resiya; J. Sonu (2010). "Dasapushpam: The Traditional Uses And The Therapeutic Potential Of Ten Sacred Plants Of Kerala State In India" (PDF). International Journal of Pharmaceutical Sciences and Research. 1 (10): 50–59.
  2. ^ "'Athappookalam' losing traditional verve - KERALA - The Hindu".
  3. ^ Dasapushpam as ingredient for folk medicine
  4. ^ "evolvulus alsinoides". Archived from the original on 2015-09-15. Retrieved 2013-05-23.
  5. ^ Ipomoea sepiaria
  6. ^ Cyanthillium cinereum
  7. ^ "Antimicrobial activity of Ipolmoea sepiaria" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2016-03-05. Retrieved 2013-05-24.
Retrieved from ""