| Senna siamea | |
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Scientific classification 
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| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| Clade: | Tracheophytes |
| Clade: | Angiosperms |
| Clade: | Eudicots |
| Clade: | Rosids |
| Order: | Fabales |
| Family: | Fabaceae |
| Subfamily: | Caesalpinioideae |
| Tribe: | Cassieae |
| Genus: | Senna |
| Species: | S. siamea |
| Binomial name | |
| Senna siamea (Lam.) Irwin et Barneby | |
| Synonyms | |
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Senna siamea, also known as Siamese cassia, kassod tree, cassod tree and cassia tree, is a legume in the subfamily Caesalpinioideae. It is native to South and Southeast Asia, although its exact origin is unknown.
Description
It is a medium-size, evergreen tree growing up to 18 m (60 ft) with yellow flowers. Leaves are alternate, pinnately compound, with slender, green-reddish, tinged axis and 6 to 12 pairs of leaflets on short stalks, rounded at both ends.
It is often used as shade tree in cocoa, coffee and tea plantations. In Thailand it is the provincial tree of Chaiyaphum Province and some places in the country are named after it.
Uses
This plant has medicinal value and it contains a compound named barakol. The leaves, tender pods and seeds are edible, but they must be previously boiled and the water discarded. They are used in Burmese and also in Thai cuisine where one of the most well-known preparations is kaeng khilek (Thai: แกงขี้เหล็ก).
In Burmese tradition, during the full moon day of Tazaungmon, Burmese families pick Siamese cassia buds and prepare it in a salad called mezali phu thoke (မယ်ဇလီဖူးသုပ်) or in a soup.
Other uses include as fodder plant, in intercropping systems, windbreaks, and shelter belts. As a hardwood, it is used for ornamentation on instruments (ukuleles and guitars) and decorative products. In this capacity it is known as pheasantwood or polohala, named for the similarity of the grain to pheasant feathers. It is sometimes used in Chinese furniture (known as jichimu) interchangeably with wood from the Ormosia species.
Scientific studies have established its medicinal potential, mainly on account of the anxyolitic properties of its main active chemical: barakol. It is sold in Asian pharmacies, mostly as a sleep aid, but also to treat constipation and as a hair balm.
Vernacular names
- Burmese: မယ်ဇလီ, mezali
- Thai: ขี้เหล็ก, khilek
- Vietnamese: muồng đen
- Lao: ຕົ້ນຂີ້ເຫຼັກ, ton khi heak
- Twi: Nkyedua
- Ewe: Zangara gbe
- Kiswahili : mhoba
- Assamese: Xunaroo
See also
References
- NRCS. "Senna siamea". PLANTS Database. United States Department of Agriculture (USDA). Retrieved 10 November 2015.
- "Nana Garden". Archived from the original on 2014-07-10. Retrieved 2011-08-31.
- "Gaeng Ki Lek: On the Trail of a Curry from Northern Thailand to Suburban KL (Part 2 of 2)".
- "AgroForestryTree Database". Archived from the original on 2012-01-17. Retrieved 2011-08-31.
- "The merry, marry months start in Myanmar". The Myanmar Times. Archived from the original on 2020-11-12. Retrieved 2018-11-02.
- "Senna siamea". Winrock International. Archived from the original on 2011-09-26.
- "Pheasantwood | the Wood Database - Lumber Identification (Hardwood)".
- Curtis Evarts. "Chinese Furniture Materials: | Jichimu (Chicken-wing wood) 鸡翅木". chinese-furniture.com.
- Thongsaard, W.; Deachapunya, C.; Pongsakorn, S.; Boyd, E. A.; Bennett, G. W.; Marsden, C. A. (1996). "Barakol: A potential anxiolytic extracted from Cassia siamea". Pharmacology, Biochemistry, and Behavior. 53 (3): 753–758. doi:10.1016/0091-3057(95)02088-8. PMID 8866982.
- "ຕົ້ນຂີ້ເຫຼັກ / Siamese cassia". phakhaolao.la. Archived from the original on 2023-12-11. Retrieved 2023-12-11.
External links
- FAO - Senna siamea (Lam.) Irwin & Barneby Archived 2017-07-08 at the Wayback Machine
- Senna siamea in West African plants – A Photo Guide.
| Taxon identifiers | |
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| Senna siamea |
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| Cassia siamea | |