1450

 

Loranthus longiflorus Desr.

Synonym	:	Scurrula amplexifolia G.Don
Family	:	Loranthaceae
Local name	:	English- Mistletoe Malayalam-  Ithilkanni , Chuvanna itthikkanni
Flowering and fruiting period	:	December to May
Distribution	:	It is indigenous to tropical regions especially in India, Srilanka, Thailand, China, Australia, Bangladesh, Malayasia and Myanmar
Distribution in Kerala	:	All districts
Habitat	:	Moist and dry deciduous forests, also in the plains, hemi parasite.
Uses	:	Plants and natural products are extensively used in several traditional systems of medicine,
Key botanical characters: Loranthus longiflorus is a perennial climbing woody parasitic plant. Stem woody, terete, lenticellate. Leaves subopposite, 5-10 x 3-4.5 cm, ovate-oblong to lanceolate, base turncate, obtuse or cordate, apex acute or obtuse, thickly coriaceous; petiole 2-3 mm long or absent. Inflorescene axilliary and lateral, curved racemes, 3-5 cm long, many-flowered; pedicels c. 3 mm long. Calyx 2-3 mm long, turncate. Corolla tube pink, 2.5-3.5 cm long, curved, slender at base, widening to top; lobes green, 0.7-1 cm long, c. 2 mm wide, linear, recurved. Filaments bright red, c. 4 mm long; anthers yellow, linear-oblong. Ovary 2-3 mm long. Berry 1-1.5 x 0.3-0.4 cm, oblong, crimson.