// Workers AI · dad joke modeWhy did Senna alata go to the party? Because it was a blooming good time.
| Senna alata | |
|---|---|
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Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| Clade: | Tracheophytes |
| Clade: | Angiosperms |
| Clade: | Eudicots |
| Clade: | Rosids |
| Order: | Fabales |
| Family: | Fabaceae |
| Subfamily: | Caesalpinioideae |
| Genus: | Senna |
| Species: | S. alata |
| Binomial name | |
| Senna alata | |
| Synonyms[2] | |
| |
Senna alata is an important Neotropical medicinal tree, as well as an ornamental flowering plant in the subfamily Caesalpinioideae. It also known as emperor's candlesticks,[3] candle bush,[4][5] candelabra bush, Christmas candles,[6] empress candle plant, ringworm shrub,[6] Roman candle,[5] or candletree. A remarkable species of Senna, it was sometimes separated in its own genus, Herpetica.
Geographic range
[edit]Senna alata is native to most of the Neotropics (from Mexico and the West Indies to Paraguay),[7][8][9] and can be found in diverse habitats. In the tropics, it grows up to an altitude of 1,200 metres (3,900 ft). It is brought over to Malesia of the Old World by the Spanish galleon trade in Manila 16th century;[10] however they have been adapted in communities of the southeast Asian, North Australian and African ranges with greater ornamental and medicinal values.
It is so naturalized in the Malay Peninsula (known in Malay: gelenggang) that its blooming from mid November-December there has become incorporated in the Kedahan traditional rice planting cycle (piama) as a marker of its beginning dry season.[11]
Description
[edit] | This section needs more citations. (April 2026) |
The shrub stands 3–4 metres (9.8–13.1 ft) tall, with leaves 50–80 centimetres (20–31 in) long.
The leaves close in the dark.
The inflorescence looks like a yellow candle.
The fruit, shaped like a straight pod, is up to 25 cm long. Its seeds are distributed by water or animals.
The seed pods (fruits) are nearly straight, dark brown or nearly black, about 15 centimetres (5.9 in) long, and 15 millimetres (0.59 in) wide. On both sides of the pods is a wing that runs the length of the pod. A pod contains 50 to 60 flattened, triangular seeds.
Cultivation
[edit] | This section needs more citations. (August 2026) |
This species is easy to grow from the seed. They may either be sown directly or started in a nursery.
Medicinal uses
[edit] | This section needs more citations. (August 2026) |
Senna alata (also known as Cassia alata) is often called the ringworm bush because of its very effective fungicidal properties, for treating ringworm and other fungal infections of the skin. The leaves are ground in a mortar to obtain a kind of "green cotton wool". This is mixed with the same amount of vegetable oil and rubbed on the affected area two or three times a day. A fresh preparation is made every day.[12] Its active ingredients include the yellow chrysophanic acid.
Its laxative effect, due to its anthraquinone content, is also well proven.
Senna alata is locally known as akapulko in the Philippines (after the port of Acapulco)[13] where it is used as both an ornamental and medicinal plant due to its laxative, purgative and anti-fungal properties.[14]
In Sri Lanka, known as Ath-thora (ඇත්තෝර), it is used as an ingredient in Sinhala traditional medicine.
Yoruba of west Africa refer to it as ewe àsùnwòn.
Images
[edit]
S. alata in Malaysia
Inflorescences and foliage
Peetambar (S. alata) flower found in Kasta (Mitauli) of Kheri District
S. alata in southern Vietnam
S. alata leaves
References
[edit]- ↑ Botanic Gardens Conservation International (BGCI); IUCN SSC Global Tree Specialist Group (2019). "Senna alata". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2019 e.T144263375A149048081. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2019-2.RLTS.T144263375A149048081.en. Retrieved 14 April 2026.
- ↑ "Senna alata (L.) Roxb". Global Biodiversity Information Facility. Retrieved 14 April 2026.
- ↑ NRCS. "Senna allata". PLANTS Database. United States Department of Agriculture (USDA). Retrieved 1 May 2018.
- ↑ "Plant species and sites" (PDF). Government of Australia. Archived from the original (PDF) on 10 March 2021.
- 1 2 Skerrett, Adrian; Skerrett, Judith (1991). The Beautiful Plants of Seychelles. Nairobi, Kenya: Camerapix Publishers International. pp. 66, 192, 223. ISBN 978-1-874041-05-4. OCLC 31901071. Retrieved 25 July 2025.
- 1 2 Weeds of Australia, Queensland Government, 2014-10-20, retrieved 1 May 2018
- ↑ Standley, Paul; Steyermark, Julian (1946). "Flora of Guatemala". Fieldiana. v.24:pt.5 (1946): 109.
- ↑ Standley, Paul (1937). "Flora of Costa Rica". Fieldiana. v.18:pt.2 (1937): 514.
- ↑ Nicolson, Dan; et al. (1991). "Flora of Dominica vol. 2". Smithsonian Contributions to Botany (77 (1991)): 112. ISSN 0081-024X.
- ↑ Amano, Noel; Bankoff, Greg; Findley, David Max; Barretto-Tesoro, Grace; Roberts, Patrick (Feb 2021). "Archaeological and historical insights into the ecological impacts of pre-colonial and colonial introductions into the Philippine Archipelago". The Holocene. 31 (2): 319–21. doi:10.1177/0959683620941152. hdl:21.11116/0000-0006-CB04-1.
- ↑ Rahimah A. Hamid (2010). "Piama dan petua tradisi: Ilmu menanam padi masyarakat Melayu di utara semenanjung Malaysia". SARI: Jurnal Alam dan Tamadun Melayu. 28 (2). Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia: 211–233. ISSN 0127-2721.
- ↑ HIRT, Dr Hans Martin, & Bindanda M'Pia (2008) Natural Medicine in the Tropics I: Foundation text. anamed, Winnenden, Germany
- ↑ Madrid, Carlos (2020). "Transpacific Maritime Networks and the Manila-Acapulco Galleons, 1565–1815". More Hispanic Than We Admit. Vol. 3 (Quincentennial ed.). Academica Filipina. p. 303.
- ↑ "Akapulko / Cassia alata Linn. / RINGWORM BUSH / Yi bing jue ming / Herbal Therapy / Philippine Medicinal Herbs / Alternative Medicine in the Philippines". stuartxchange.org. Retrieved 1 May 2018.
Sources
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