Botanical Name: Zanthoxylum rhetsa (Roxb.) DC.
Family: Rutaceae
Common Name: Indian Prickly Ash
Vernacular/Local Name: Tefla (also known as Teppal/Triphal)
Diagnostic Characters: A deciduous tree with a spreading crown. Stems bear prickles or conical spines. Leaves are pinnate. Flowers are small, greenish-yellow, borne in terminal cymose panicles or panicle-like clusters. Fruits are aromatic capsules (follicles); the woody pericarp has three lobes/pods, giving rise to the vernacular names “Triphal†or “Teppal.†Seeds are globose, smooth, and blue-black to dark.
Phenology: March – November
Uses:
- In Goa, Konkan, Karnataka coast, and Coorg, the fruit (teppal/tefla) is used as a spice, especially in seafood curries such as mackerel and sardine.
- Traditional medicine: Used for asthma, bronchitis, mouth and throat ailments, hiccoughs, heart diseases, diarrhea, piles, malaria, urinary disorders, rheumatism, and stomach ache.
- Folk medicine: Chewed or applied for toothache relief.
- Phytochemistry: Contains alkaloids, lignans, and terpenes; reported to have cytotoxic activity (against melanoma cells), anti-inflammatory activity, and UV protective properties.
References:
Flowers of India – Indian Prickly Ash
Tropical Plants Database – Zanthoxylum rhetsa
