---

CLASSIFICATION

ORDER	:  Liliales
FAMILY	:  Colchicaceae
GENUS	:  Gloriosa
SPECIES	:  superba L.
BOTANICAL NAME	:  Gloriosa superba L.
SYNONYMS	:  Gloriosa rothschlidiana O'Brien
COMMON NAME	:  Glory lily, Gloriosa Lily, Tiger claw.
TAMIL NAME	:  Chenkanthal, Kallappai Kilangu.
HINDI NAME	:  Bachnag, Kari hari.

PLANT DESCRIPTION

HABIT:  Glory Lily is a most unusual and splendid flower, which is a sight to behold. Glory Lily is a twining vine that is able to climb up with tendrils formed at the tips of the leaves.

LEAVES:  Leaves are bright green and lance shape, 2-3 in. long. The leaf tip elongates into a Slender tendril that coils around nearby supports to get a grip.

BUDS :  In bud, the pale green tepals face downward. As the blossom matures, the tepals elongate and wrinkle and gradually arch backward while sequencing through a spectrum of color from green to yellow to scarlet.

FLOWERS :  The stamens are extremely prominent and spread outward in graceful curves that follow the tepals in their backward progression. The flower is 3-5 in in length.

MEDICINAL USES

The plant is used to cure arthritis, gout, rheumatism, inflammation, ulcers, bleeding piles, skin diseases, leprosy, impotency, snakebites, etc.

It’s rhizomes are reported to have been used as a tonic, anti-periodic, anti- helminthic and also against snakebites and scorpion stings.

The medicinal properties of the plant are due to presence of alkaloids chiefly colchicine and gloriosine.

The discovery of high colchicine content in seeds led to surge in demand in domestic and international markets.

IMAGES

Print this page