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Bentinckia condapanna

Berry

Hill arecanut

Arecaceae Edible: Leaves, Shoots 17 iNaturalist observations

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(c) Balakrishnan Peroth, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), uploaded by Balakrishnan Peroth

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(c) Hopeland, some rights reserved (CC BY)

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Bentinckia condapanna, the hill areca nut, is a species of flowering plant in the family Arecaceae. It is found only in India. It is threatened by habitat loss. This palm is mainly found in the evergreen forests of Western Ghats of India.

Description

A palm. It has a smooth trunk 10 m tall. It is grey and has annual ring scars from leaves. The fronds arch over. The leaves are compound with leaflets along the sides. The leaves are up to 2 m long and the leaflets are 60-75 cm long by 3-5 cm wide. The flowering stalk comes from just below the crown. The flowers are small. Male flowers are red and female flowers are lilac. The fruit are a flattened round shape. They are 1 cm across and red.

Edible Uses

The young leaves or shoots are eaten raw or cooked.

Traditional Uses

The young leaves or shoots are eaten raw or cooked.

This uses section is brief — help expand it

Distribution

It is a tropical plant. It occurs between 760-1,800 m above sea level. It is in areas with a rainfall between 200-500 cm and a temperature between 15°-24°C. It can be in acid, neutral or alkaline soils with pH between 5.6-8.0.

Where It Grows

Asia, India,

References (2)

  • Dobriyal, M. J. R. & Dobriyal, R., 2014, Non Wood Forest Produce an Option for Ethnic Food and Nutritional Security in India. Int. J. of Usuf. Mngt. 15(1):17-37
  • Recovery plan for selected ETMP's and Conservation Models. Chapter 5 p 167 (Off internet)

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