Aquilaria malaccensis Aquilaria malaccensis Aquilaria
malaccensis Aquilaria malaccensis Lam.
TRIPURATRIPURATRIPURATRIPURA
State State State State TreeTreeTreeTree:::: Aloe Wood, Eagle
Wood.
Botanical Name:Botanical Name:Botanical Name:Botanical Name:
AquilariaAquilariaAquilariaAquilaria
malaccensismalaccensismalaccensismalaccensis Lam.
CommonCommonCommonCommon Names:Names:Names:Names: Sasi
(Assamese); Agar, Agaru (Bengali); Agarwood, Malayan Aloe Wood,
Malayan Eagle Wood (English); Agaru (Sanskrit).
Family:Family:Family:Family: Thymeleaceae.
Etymology: Etymology: Etymology: Etymology: The specific epithet
is named after its type locality, ‘Malacca’.
Description:Description:Description:Description: A large
evergreen tree, 20 –
40 m tall. Stem 60 cm in diam.; young bark
light brown with fine hairs, older one
smooth and whitish; wood without resin
light, soft, and white, while wood with
resin heavy, hard, and dark. Leaves
alternate, oblong-lanceolate, elliptic-
obovate or lanceolate, acute at base,
caudate-acuminate at apex, 6 – 8 × 3 – 3.5
cm; lateral veins 12 – 16 pairs.
Inflorescence a terminal or axillary umbel.
Flowers bisexual, up to 5 mm long,
fragrant. Perianth campanulate, 6.3 – 7.5
cm long, yellowish green or white. Stamens
10. Ovary subsessile; stigma large. Fruits
egg-shaped capsule, ca 4 × 2.5 cm, leathery exocarp with fine
hairs, green; seeds 2, ovoid,
densely covered with red-brown hair, blackish brown.
Flowering & Fruiting:Flowering & Fruiting:Flowering
& Fruiting:Flowering & Fruiting: June – August and November
– December.
Range of Range of Range of Range of
DistributionDistributionDistributionDistribution: India,
Bangladesh, Indonesia, Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines,
Singapore and Thailand.
Economic Importance:Economic Importance:Economic
Importance:Economic Importance: The wood of the tree yields an
essential called oil chuwah or agar
which is used in attar or perfume and as incense raw material.
Agarwood contains more
than 12 chemical components that can be extracted from it. Wood
without or with low
content of resin can be used for boxes, interior or veneer. The
inner fibrous bark has
occasionally been used locally as raw material for clothing and
ropes.
Traditional Knowledge:Traditional Knowledge:Traditional
Knowledge:Traditional Knowledge: In Northeast India it is known as
‘Sanchi’ plant. Its use in the region
is prehistoric. The bark was once used for preparing a writing
material called ‘Sanchi Pat’
for writing history, mythology, folk songs, medicinal and holy
scripts while agar, a fragrant,
resinous, dark-coloured wood and its product called agar oil
obtained from the diseased
wood of the tree, which is associated with the cultural heritage
of people in Northeast India
since ancient time. There are mentions of Agar of ancient Kamrup
in Chinese pilgrim
HiuenTsang, Abhigyan Sakuntalam of Kalidas and Arthasastra of
Kautilya.
Medicinal Uses: Medicinal Uses: Medicinal Uses: Medicinal Uses:
The resinous substance is used in gout and rheumatism. The agar
extracted
from the wood is used against vomiting. The wood is digestive,
carminative, cardiotonic and
aphrodisiac. The juice of the bark is used for treatment of
diarrhoea. Chemicals obtained
from it can be used as venom repellent.
Note: Note: Note: Note: Agartala, the capital of Tripura is
named after the Agar wood which was very common
in the area at one time.
KKKK.... Pagag Pagag Pagag Pagag & S.K. Singh& S.K.
Singh& S.K. Singh& S.K. Singh
Botanical Survey of India, Eastern Regional Centre,
Shillong.