Botanical Name: Ventilago madraspatana Gaertn.
Family: Rhamnaceae
Names in different Indian languages
| English | Red creeper |
|---|---|
| Hindi | Pitti |
| Kannada | Pappali, papudi |
| Malayalam | Vempada |
| Sanskrit | Dineshavalli, rakta valli |
| Tamil | Vempata, suruvatakodi |
| Telugu | Erasugudi |
| Unani | |
| Folk |
Though there is nothing red about the plant, the common (Red Creeper) is said to allude to the fact that the plant is used in the treatment of blood and heart-related diseases. Its said it has a foul smell but I guess your nose is safe till you smell the flowers up close. (Note: This looks like Ziziphus sp. Ventilago fruits are samaras, but this photo shows developing drupes.)
Synonym
Taamravalli, Kaivartikaa, Vaamataruni
uses:
carminative,stomachic, febrifuge, antifungal
useful in skin diseases
chemicals
ventinones A and B, physcion, chrysophanol, naphthaquinones, anthraquinones, islandicin, emodin, xanthorin
