Aonla

• Family: Phyllanthaceae
• Local Names: Hindi (Aonla, Amalaki), Bengali (Amla, Anla), Tamil (Nellikai, Amla), Telugu (Usiri, Amla), Kannada (Nellikai, Aonla), Malayalam (Amla, Nellikkai), Marathi (Amla, Awla), Gujarati (Amla, Awla), Punjabi (Aonla, Amla), Oriya (Amla, Anla).

Description

1. Phyllanthus acidus is a small, glabrous tree up to 10 m tall with phyllanthoid branching, bark rough, grey, with prominent lenticels; cataphylls not persistent, blackish-brown, their stipules triangular-ovate; deciduous branchlets ascending, (20-)25-52 cm long, with 25-40 leaves.

2. Phyllanthus, the generic name is derived from the Greek ‘phullon’-leaf and ‘anthos’-flowers from the fact that members of this genus have flowers in dense clusters in leaf axils.

Ecology

Otaheiti gooseberry grows well in the tropics at low and medium altitudes in places with a short or prolonged dry season. The tree prefers hot, humid tropical lowlands. In north-eastern Brazil, the tree has been found in coastal forest and in Southeast Asia it is cultivated on humid sites, up to 1 000 m altitude.

Native range

Brazil, Colombia

Tree Management

1. It is grown at a spacing of 8 m x 8 m in Indonesia.

2. Otaheiti gooseberry grows well in the tropics at low and medium altitudes in places with a short or prolonged dry season. The tree prefers hot, humid tropical lowlands. In north-eastern Brazil, the tree has been found in coastal forest and in Southeast Asia it is cultivated on humid sites, up to 1 000 m altitude.

3. The country gooseberry is generally grown from seed, but vegetative propagation techniques such as budding, greenwood cuttings, cleft grafting or air layering are also used.

Timber

The wood is fairly hard, strong, tough and durable if seasoned. It is used for utensils and other small objects.

Shade or Shelter

Medicine

The latex is credited with emetic and purgative activity. In Indonesia the bark is heated with coconut oil and spread on eruptions on feet and hands. An infusion of the root is taken to alleviate asthma in Java. In Borneo, roots are used in the treatment of psoriosis of the feet. A leaf decoction is applied to urticaria, a decoction of the bark is used to treat bronchial catarrh in Philippines. The fruit is used as a laxative in Myanmar. In India, the fruits are taken as a liver tonic to enrich the blood.

Gum or Resin