Ayurvedic medicinal plant families and their botanical descriptions

SOME IMPORTANT AYURVEDIC
MEDICINAL PLANT FAMILIES –
BOTANICAL DESCRIPTION
PRESENTEDBY:
DR.DEEPAK VERMA
BAMS MD
LECTURER,DAC[PUNJAB]4/16/2020
1
DR.DEEPAK VERMA NOTES

FAMILIES
• MENISPERMACEAE
• MALVACEAE
• FABACEAE
• RUTACEAE
• RUBIACEAE
• RANUNCULACEAE
• UMBELLIFERAE
• SOLANACEAE
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MENISPERMACEAE
[ GUDUCHI KULA]
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GUDUCHI/GILOYA
PATHA
PATAL GARURI

GENERAL INTRODUCTION
4/16/2020 DR.DEEPAK VERMA NOTES
4
Mostly woody vines – lianas,dioecious;flowers trimerous, unisexual;
double whorls of sepals and petals; curved seed.
Their trimerous flower structure is similar to the Lardizabalaceae and
Berberidaceae, although they differ from them in other important
characteristics. This family is commonly called as Moonseed family. Contains
68 genera with some 440 species.

Botanical description
5

CLASSIFICATION
• Kingdom Plantae – Plants
• Subkingdom Tracheobionta – Vascular plants
• Superdivision Spermatophyta – Seed plants
• Division Magnoliophyta – Flowering plants
• Class Magnoliopsida – Dicotyledons
• Subclass Magnoliidae
• Order Ranunculales
• Family Menispermaceae – Moonseed family
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HABITAT
• It is commonly known as Moonseed family, includes 70 genera and 400
species, distributed largely throughout paleotropic regions and a few genera
extend into the eastern Mediterranean region and eastern Asia.
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HABIT:
• Twining woody climbing plants, Winding anti-
clockwise except stephania.
• Rarely upright shrubs or small trees.
• More rarely still herbaceous plants or
epiphytes (Stephania cyanantha).
• Perennial or deciduous, with simple to uni-
serrate hairs.
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LEAVES:
Simple (rarely trifoliate in a few tropical spp.) petiolate,
exstipulate, mostly entire or occasionally palmately-lobed, mostly
palmately-veined.
STEM :
Rapidly growing stems with trilacunar nodes. Mostly woody
and twining rarely erect.
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FLOWERS
Small, unisexual, greenish, generally actinomorphic, hypogynous, cyclic, trimerous
or dimerous.
INFLORESCENCE :
Racemose, dioecious (monoecious in Albertisia).
• Sepals:
Sepals 6, in two whorls of 3 each. Free to slightly fused, imbricate or valvate,
sometimes less numerous in female flowers.
• Petals:
Petals 6, in two whorls of 3 each, usually smaller than sepals. frequently holding the
opposite stamen, sometimes less numerous in female flowers.
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11
Androecium :
• Staminate flowers with usually 6 stamens (sometimes 3 or ∝) opposite to
petals, when of same number, free; variously connate or monadelphous
forming a central column (Cissampelos), anthers 4-celled, dehiscing
longitudinally.
• Female flowers sometimes with staminodes.
• Gynoecium Carpels 3 or more, in pistillate flowers, apocarpous; ovary
superior, 1-loculed, ovules 2 aborting to 1, parietal placentation; style
very short or absent; stigma terminal, capitate or discoid, entire or lobed.
• Male flowers sometimes with carpelodes.

• Fruit compound, each unit in a straight or flattened, asymmetric
drupe, more or less stipitate (rarely only one developed),Exocarp
membranous, mesocarp pulpy, fleshy or fibrous, endocarp woody
to petrous, rough, tuberous, echinate or ribbed, often with a recess
in the placenta called a condyle.
• Seeds Endospermic or non-endospermic, usually curved,
endosperm fleshy in Menispermum, Cocculus, Calycocarpum.
• Embryo straight or curved, with two cotyledons flat or
cylindrical, leafy or fleshy.
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MALVACEAE
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 BALA-DWAYAM
 JAPA
 PARISHA
 NAGBALA
 LATA KASTURI

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Stellate hairs on the young parts, mucilaginous juice present, leaves
alternate, stipulate, multicostate reticulate; inflorescence solitary or
cyme; flower actinomorphic, hermaphrodite, hypogynous, pentamerous,
with epicalyx, calyx free or united, corolla free; stamens indefinite,
monadelphous; anthers monothecous, stamens united to form a tube;
gynoecium many often five, syncarpous, ovary multilocular, superior,
axile placentation; fruit schizocarpic carcerulus or capsule.Pollen grains
large spherical, spiny and together with monothecous anthers form one of
the distinguishing characters of the family The numerous stamens are
supposed to have arisen by multiplication of five epipetalous members.

15
• 250 genera
• 4230 species
• Consists of hermaphroditic, rarely monoecious or
• polygamous trees, shrubs or herbs
• Often with either stellate trichomes or peltate
scales
• Eudicot

16

BOTANICAL DESCRIPTION
LEAVES:
Simple or palmately coumpound, Sometime lobed to divided. Palmately or pinnately
veined,Usually spiral and stipulate, Stipules often caducous.
(Caducous- falling early before associated organs are mature )
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FLOWER
 Bisexual (rarely Unisexual)
 most Actinomorphic
Epicalyx typically presenta
 Hypogynous (situated below the ovary)
CALYX
 Aposepalous (distinct sepals)
 Basally synsepalous (flowers
with fused sepals)
 5 [less often 3 or 4]
 Valvate sepals (meeting
without overlapping)

COROLLA STAMEN
• Apopetalous (distinct,
separate petals), Sometmes
adnate to the base of an
androecium tube
• Rarely absent 5
• Clawed, convolute, valvate
or imbricate petals.
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5 ∞
• Filaments usually connate
• Either as tube surrounding
the ovary or bundles of stamens
or a tube bearing bundles.
ANTHERS &
POLLEN
Anther: longitudinal or poricidal
(through pores) dehiscence.
Pollen: spinulose or smooth

GYNOECIUMSyncarpous (carpels connate into single unit)
• Superior ovary
• 2 ∞ carpels
• 2 ∞ [1] locules
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STYLE, PLACENTATION
&NECTARIES
Style: Unlobed, lobed or branched at apex
Placentation: axile
Nectaries: consists of glandular trichomes typically
present at the adaxial base of the calyx

FRUIT & SEEDS
Fruits:
Loculicidal
Septicidal
Indehiscent capsule
Schizocarp of mericarps
Rarely berry or samara
Seeds:
Exalbuminous (no endosperm) or
Endorspermous (oily and starchy endosperm)
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FABACEAE/MIMOSACEAE
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KHADIRA
SHIRISHA
IRIMEDA
LAJJALU

GENERAL
INTRODUCTION
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Fabaceae is the third largest family among the
angiosperms after Orchidaceae and Asteraceae,
consisting of more than 700 genera and about
20,000 species of trees, shrubs, vines, and herbs and
is worldwide in distribution.

23

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• Habit: Annual or perennial. I lerbs. shrubs, vines, or tree.
• Roots: Fibrous tap root often develops nodules in herbs. Nitrogen Fixing
bacteria live in these nodules.
• Stem: Herbaceous or Moody; Cylindrical, tendril climbers.
• Leaves: Petiolate; alternate: compound of pinnate type. Stipulate, stipules may
be modified into leaves or thrones; parallel venation.
• Inflorescence: Racemose or cymose, the flowers are clustered in heads.
• Flower: Pedicillate; bracteate: actinomorphic or zygomorphic; regular: complete;
hermaphrodite; pentamerous; hypogynous but slightly perigynous
• Calyx: 5 or sometime 4 sepals: free or fused green S. Corolla: 5 sometimes 4
petals; free or united. colour
• Stamens: 0 or numerous stamens; polyandrous, in some cases
• diadelphous, anther basitlxed. .
• Carpel: Monocarpillary: ovary superior, placentation marginal.
• Fruits: Legume or sometimes. loment UM. 12. Seed: Non-endospermic seed.
• Seed: Non-endospermic seed

RUTACEAE
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BILVA
BIJPURA
MATULUNGA
KAIDARYA

GENERAL
INTRODUCTION
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• The family is commonly is called orange or Lemon family.
• The family comprises 150 genera and 1300 species out of
which India contributes 71 species.
• Rutaceae is related to the Meliaceae, Sapindaceae and
Anacardiaceae in habit, leaf structure, presence of disc
around the ovary and obdiplostemonous condition of
androecium.
• The family Rutaceae is also related to Euphorbiaceae on
account of the presence of ventral raphe of the ovule in some
genera.
• The members of the family are distributed in tropical and
temperate regions and they are predominant in South Africa
and Australia.

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Leaves gland dotted, simple or compound; flower
hermaphrodite, hypogynous, actinomorphic with a
disc below the ovary; corolla polypetalous; stamens
ten, obdiplostemonous; carpels 5 or many, ovary
superior, multilocular; fruit capsule or berry;
aromatic odour is present.

28

HABIT:
29
The plant are generally shrubs (Murray a, Limonia,
Zanthoxylum), trees (Aegle, Citrus, Feronia),
rarely herbs (Ruta graveolens) with strong
fragrance.

Leaves:
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• Alternate (Citrus, Murraya) or opposite (Evodia),
petiolate, petiole may be winged
• (Citrus aurantium), simple or compound-pinnate
(Murraya), palmate (Aegle and Citrus) smooth
gland dotted, glands with essential oils, exstipulate,
margin entire
• serrate, unicostate reticulate venation. In Citrus
petiole is winged.

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• Leaves,
simple or compound.
• Flower
hermaphrodite, hypogynous,
actinomorphic with a disc below
the ovary.
• Corolla
polypetalous.
• Stamens
ten, obdiplostemonous.
• Carpels
5 or many, ovary superior,
multilocular.
• Fruit
capsule or berry.
Root:
• Tap root, branched often infected
with fungus.
Stem:
•Woody (Citrus, Feronia), erect,
cylindrical, branched, solid often
thorny (Citrus), gland dotted.
• Aromatic odour is present.

RUBIACEAE
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MANJISHTHA
MADANPHALA
KADAMBA
GANDHA PRASHARINI

GENERAL
INTRODUCTION
33
• Trees or herbs; leaves alternate or opposite; stipules
interpetiolar or intrapetiolar, inflorescence cymose; flowers
tetra or pentamerous, hermaphrodite, actinomorphic,
epigynous, corolla, gamopetalous; stamens 4-5; epipetalous,
introrse, dithecous; ovary inferior, bilocular with one or
many ovules in each loculus; fruit capsule or berry.

34
This family includes 4800 to 5500 species.
Family Rubiaceae belongs to order Rubiales of subclass gamopetalae in
dicots.
It is commonly called as coffee family, is large, mainly tropical, and quite
readily recognizable. It contains about 611 genera and more than 13,150
species, which are found worldwide in most habitats.
The main distinguishing features of the family are the characteristic
stipules and inferior ovaries.
Pollination of Rubiaceae flowers is almost always by animals, including
insects, birds, and bats, and the flowers have a notably wide range of
forms.

35

HABITAT :
36
Terrestrial and rarely aquatic.
HABIT :
Majority of plants are either trees or shrubs.
The climbing habit is also found in the family. Some
climbers are herbaceous, whereas certain others are
shrubby twiners.

37
LEAVES :
Simple
Entire margin or slightly toothed.
Decussate , rarely whorled , stipulates may be interpetiolar.
Usually connate stipules
Often bearing mucilage secreting colleters.
COLLETERS – produce mucilaginous compounds to protect the young shoots

INFLORESCENCE:
38
Usually the inflorescence is of cymose type.
In Coffea arabica the flowers are found to be arranged In axillary cymes.
• FLOWER :
The flowers are hermaphrodite, usually actinomorphic and either
tetramerous or pentamerous.
They are complete and epigynous.
Sometimes the flowers become unisexual by means of reduction.

39
CALYX :
The calyx consists of five or four sepals, gamosepalous.
The aestivation is valvate.
Corolla:
The corolla consists of five or four petals, gamopetalous.
The corolla is tubular, campanulate or rotate.
The aestivation is either contorted or valvate.

40
ANDROECIUM :
It consists of five or four stamens.
The stamens are epipetalous, i.e., they are inserted at or near the throat of the
corolla tube.
The stamens alternate with the petals.
GYNOECIUM :
Usually the gynoecium consists of two carpels, syncarpous.
Generally the ovary is inferior, the ovary is bilocular, with parietal placentation.

41
FRUIT:
The fruit is a drupe, capsule or berry.
They may be dry or fleshy.
E.g., in Coffee and others; it is a capsule.
Seeds:
Generally the seeds are small and more or less winged,
endospermic, the flat cotyledons of embryo lie face to face.

RANUNCULACEAE
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VATSANABHA
ATIVISHA

43

Habit:
44
The plants are annual or perennial herbs or a climbing shrubs (Clematis,
Naravelia), rarely trees. They perennate by means of tuberous roots (Aconitum)
or rhizomes.
Root:
Tap root, adventitious or tuberous (Ranunculus spp. and Aconitum). The tap root
system is in the initial stage but sooner or later replaced by the adventitious roots.
Stem:
Herbaceous, in some climbing (Clematis) or underground rhizome or erect,
branched.
Leaves:
Generally simple, alternate, or opposite (Clematis) exstipulate rarely stipulate
(Thalictrum), sheathing leaf base, petiolate rarely sessile (Delphinium). In some
aquatic species leaves may show dimorphy (Ranunculus aquatilis); unicostate or
multicostate reticulate venation.

45
• Inflorescence:
• Solitary terminal ,axillary , raceme (Aconitum, Delphinium) and cymose (Ranunculus spp.
FLOWER
Pedicellate, ebracteate rarely bracteate. Mostly actinomorphic (Ranunculus) rarely
zygomorphic (Delphinium and Aconitum) hypogynous, complete, pentamerous.
Calyx:
There is no distinction of calyx and corolla in most of the flowers. Sepals
5, caducous, polysepalous, petaloid, imbricate or valvate aestivation.
Corolla:
Petals 5, polypetalous, nectaries present at the base of petals. Petals are united to form
spur (Delphinium).
Androecium:
Stamens indefinite, polyandrous, spirally arranged on the thalamus, inferior; anthers
dithecous, extrorse and adnate.
Gynoecium:
Polycarpellary (one carpel in Delphinium and 3 to 5 in Aconitum), apocarpous rarely
syncarpous (Nigella), ovary superior, marginal placentation (axile in Nigella).

46
• Fruit:
Aggregate, etario of achenes (Ranunculus), etario of follicle (Aconitum),
follicle (Delphinium), septicidal capsule (Nigella)
• Seed:
Small, oily and endospermic.

UMBELLIFERAE
[ APIACEAE]
47
MANDUKAPARNI
HINGU
JIRAKA DWAYAM
YAVANI
AJMODA
DHANYAKA
GARJAN
SHATPUSHPA
MISHREYA

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In our country the family is represented by several important species such as,
Coriandrum sativum, Foeniculum vulgare, Cuminum cyminum, Daucus carota,
Camm copticum, Hydrocotyle asiatica, etc.
Stem fistular, leaves alternate, much dissected mostly decompound, sheathing
leaf base; inflorescence umbel or compound umbel occasionally simple; flowers
epigynous, pentamerous, regular rarely zygomorphic, hermaphrodite; calyx
superior, pentafid or 0; corolla five, polypetalous, often inflexed; stamens 5;
carpels 2; syncarpous, bicarpellary with 2 pendulous ovules; honey-disc
surrounding the stigmas – stylopodium is present; fruit cremocarp; seeds
endospermic and oily.

49

50
• Habit:
Majority of the plants are annual, biennial or perennial herbs.
Sometimes shrubs and undershrub’s are also found.
• Leaves:
The leaves are alternate, exstipulate amplexicaul and much
dissected, rarely the leaves are opposite, e.g., Apiastrum. Usually
the leaves are pinnately compound. However, in some cases the
leaves are simple, e.g., Hydrocotyle.

51
• Inflorescence:
The inflorescence is umbel. This may be simple or compound. In majority of
cases compound umbel is found, e.g., Coriandrum, Foeniculum, etc.
• Flower:
The flowers are usually hermaphrodite but sometimes unisexual flowers are
also found.
In majority of the inflorescences the flowers are regular
(actinomorphic) but sometimes the outer flowers of the umbles are
zygomorphic and irregular, e.g., Coriandrum sativum. The flowers are
usually pedicellate, bracteate, complete and epigynous.
• Calyx:
It consists of five sepals. These sepals are very minute in structure. The odd
sepal being posterior. In many the calyx is absent, e.g., Foeniculum vulgare.
• Corolla:
It consists of five petals, polypetalous, i.e., the petals are free. They are usually
white or yellow in colour. The petals vary in size. In many cases two of the
petals being larger than the other three. The tips of the petals are usually
reflexed. Sometimes the petals are bifid, e.g., Coriandrum sativum.

52
• Androecium:
It consists of five stamens alternate to the petals. The stamens arise from
an epigynous disc. The anthers are bilobed, introrse, basi or dorsifixed.
The filaments are free. The anthers split by longitudinal slits.
• Gynoecium:
It consists of two carpels (bicarpellary), syncarpous. The ovary is
inferior, bilocular, each loculus contains a single pendulous, anatropous
ovule. The placentation is axile. On the top of the ovary a nectar disc is
found which surrounds the two capitate stigmas.

53
• Seed:
The seed is endospermic containing a minute embryo.
• Fruit:
The fruit is cremocarp. The ovary splits into two mericarps.
• Root:
Usually the root is tap and branched.
• Stem:
Usually, erect, rarely climbing, herbaceous.

SOLANACEAE
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ASHWAGANDHA
BRAHTI
KANTAKARI
KAKAMACHI
PARSIKA YAVANI

55
Plants herbs, shurbs rarely trees; leaves alternate,
flowers solitary or in cymes; axillary or terminal;
flowers pentamerous, actinomorphic, hypogynous,
hermaphrodite, calyx persistent, gamosepalous, corolla
gamopetalous, campanulate; stamens epipetalous;
gynoecium bicarpellary, syncarpous, ovary obliquely
placed, axile placentation; swollen placentae; ovules
many in each locules; fruit capsule or berry.

56

57
Habit:
Mostly herbs (Petunia, Withania), shrubs and trees.
Root:
A branched tap root system.
Stem:
Aerial, erect, climbing (Solanum jasminoides),
herbaceous, or woody, cylindrical, branched, solid or
hollow, hairy, or glabrous, underground stem in
Solanum tuberosum.
Leaves:
Cauline, ramal, exstipulate, petiolate or sessile,
alternate sometimes opposite, simple, entire pinnatisect
in Lycopersicurn, unicostate reticulate venation.

Floral Characters:
58
Inflorescence:
Solitary axillary, umbellate cyme, or helicoid cyme in Solanum.
Flower:
Bracteate or ebracteate, pedicellate, complete, hermaphrodite,
actinomorphic, pentamerous, hypogynous.
Calyx:
Sepals 5, gamosepalous, tubular or campanulate, valvate or
imbricate, persistent, green or coloured, hairy, inferior.
Corolla:
Petals 5, gamopetalous, tubular or infundibuliform, valvate or
imbricate aestivation, scale or hair-like outgrowth may arise from
the throat of the corolla tube, coloured, inferior.

59
Androecium:
Stamens 5, epipetalous, polyandrous, alternipetalous, filaments
inserted deep in the corolla tube, anthers dithecous, usually
basifixed or dorsifixed, introrse, inferior.
Gynoecium:
Bicarpellary, syncarpous, ovary superior, bilocular, unilocular in
Henoonia, axile placentation placentae swollen, many ovules in
each loculus, ovary obliquely placed; in some cases nectariferous
disc is present; style simple; stigma bifid or capitate.
Fruit:
A capsule or beery.
Seed:
Endospermic.

Thanx
60
• Ref. internet and google search

Ayurvedic medicinal plant families and their botanical descriptions

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