''Terminalia arjuna'' is a tree of the

genus Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms as well as viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus comes above species and below family. In binomial nom ...

'' Terminalia''. It is commonly known as arjuna or arjun tree in English.

Description

''T. arjuna'' grows to about 20–25 metres tall; usually has a

buttressed A buttress is an architectural structure built against or projecting from a wall which serves to support or reinforce the wall. Buttresses are fairly common on more ancient buildings, as a means of providing support to act against the lateral (si ...

trunk, and forms a wide canopy at the crown, from which branches drop downwards. It has oblong, conical leaves which are green on the top and brown below; smooth, grey bark; it has pale yellow flowers which appear between March and June; its glabrous, 2.5 to 5 cm fibrous woody fruit, divided into five wings, appears between September and November. The tree does not suffer from any major diseases or pests, but it is susceptible to '' Phyllactinia terminale'' and rot due to '' polystictus affinis''.

Distribution and habitat

The arjuna is seen across the

Indian Subcontinent The Indian subcontinent is a list of the physiographic regions of the world, physiographical region in United Nations geoscheme for Asia#Southern Asia, Southern Asia. It is situated on the Indian Plate, projecting southwards into the Indian O ...

, and usually found growing on river banks or near dry river beds in

Uttar Pradesh Uttar Pradesh (; , 'Northern Province') is a state in northern India. With over 200 million inhabitants, it is the most populated state in India as well as the most populous country subdivision in the world. It was established in 1950 ...

Bihar Bihar (; ) is a state in eastern India. It is the 2nd largest state by population in 2019, 12th largest by area of , and 14th largest by GDP in 2021. Bihar borders Uttar Pradesh to its west, Nepal to the north, the northern part of West ...

, Maharashtra,

Madhya Pradesh Madhya Pradesh (, ; meaning 'central province') is a state in central India. Its capital is Bhopal, and the largest city is Indore, with Jabalpur, Ujjain, Gwalior, Sagar, and Rewa being the other major cities. Madhya Pradesh is the seco ...

West Bengal West Bengal (, Bengali: ''Poshchim Bongo'', , abbr. WB) is a state in the eastern portion of India. It is situated along the Bay of Bengal, along with a population of over 91 million inhabitants within an area of . West Bengal is the fou ...

Odisha Odisha (English: , ), formerly Orissa ( the official name until 2011), is an Indian state located in Eastern India. It is the 8th largest state by area, and the 11th largest by population. The state has the third largest population of ...

and south and central

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

, along with Sri Lanka and

Bangladesh Bangladesh (}, ), officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh, is a country in South Asia. It is the eighth-most populous country in the world, with a population exceeding 165 million people in an area of . Bangladesh is among the mos ...

. It has also been planted in

Malaysia Malaysia ( ; ) is a country in Southeast Asia. The federation, federal constitutional monarchy consists of States and federal territories of Malaysia, thirteen states and three federal territories, separated by the South China Sea into two r ...

Indonesia Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania between the Indian and Pacific oceans. It consists of over 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, Java, Sulawesi, and parts of Borneo and New Guine ...

and

Kenya ) , national_anthem = " Ee Mungu Nguvu Yetu"() , image_map = , map_caption = , image_map2 = , capital = Nairobi , coordinates = , largest_city = Nairobi ...

Importance

Silk production

The arjuna is one of the species whose leaves are fed on by the ''

Antheraea paphia ''Antheraea paphia'', known as the South India small tussore, the tasar silkworm and vanya silkwormKavane, R. P. (2014)''Syzygium cumini'' L. – A potential new host of tropical tasar silkworm, ''Antheraea mylitta'' Drury (Lepidoptera: Satur ...

'' moth which produces the

tassar silk Tussar silk (alternatively spelled as tussah, tushar, tassar, tussore, tasar, tussur, or tusser, and also known as (Sanskrit) ''kosa'' silk) is produced from larvae of several species of silkworms belonging to the moth genus '' Antheraea'', incl ...

, a

wild silk Wild silks have been known and used in many countries from early times, although the scale of production is far smaller than that from cultivated silkworms. Silk cocoons and nests often resemble paper or cloth, and their use has arisen independent ...

of commercial importance.

Gallery

File:Terminalia arjuna.jpg, ''Terminalia arjuna'' File:Terminalia arjuna trunk 01 by Line1.JPG, ''Terminalia arjuna'' middle trunk File:Terminalia arjuna leaves 01 by Line1.JPG, ''Terminalia arjuna'' leaves File:Arjuna fruits(Dried).jpg, Arjuna fruits (dried) File:Terminalia arjuna - Bagh-e-Jinnah.jpg, ''Terminalia arjuna'' in

Bagh-e-Jinnah, Lahore ''Bagh-e-Jinnah'' ( ur, باغِ جناح, , Jinnah Garden), formerly known as Lawrence Gardens, is a historical park in the city of Lahore, Pakistan. The large green space contains a botanical garden, Masjid Dar-ul-Islam, and Quaid-e-Azam Lib ...

File:Terminalia arjuna DSC 0267.JPG, The bark of Terminalia arjuna (অর্জুন) is found in Bana Bitan, Kolkata, West Bengal, India

References

* * {{Taxonbar, from=Q2719381 arjuna Plants used in Ayurveda Flora of the Indian subcontinent