Haryana Forest Flora
A Comprehensive Database of Ligneous Plants of Haryana (India)
Designed & Developed by Bioinformatics Centre,Forest Research Institute, Dehradun
| Family: Mimosaceae | Genus: Acacia | Species: Acacia tortilis (Forssk.) Hayne( अइला ) |
Habit |
Leaf |
Flower |
Fruit |
Bark |
|
|
| Synonym | Acacia tortilis subsp. heteracantha (Burch.) Brenan, Acacia tortilis subsp. tortilis, Acacia tortilis var. raddiana (Savi) Brenan | Flower Color | White |
| Common Name | Israeli babool | Flower Type | Solitary |
| English / Trade Name | Umbrella thorn , Karamoja | Flowering Period | April-June |
| Vernacular /Local Name | Aila | Fruiting Period | July-Sept |
| Altitude | Upto 1000 m | Fruit Type | Pod |
| Habit | Tree | Fruit Details | Pods variable, indehiscent, spirally twisted or rarely almost straight, 7-10 cm long, 6-10 mm broad, longitudinally veined, leathery, glabrous to tomentellous or villous, somewhat constricted between the seeds; seeds oblique or parallel to long axis of pod, 4-7 x 3-6 mm, compressed; areole 3-6 x 2-4 mm. |
| Habitat | It is drought resistant, can tolerate strong salinity and seasonal waterlogging and generally forms open, dry forests in pure stands or mixed with other species. | Bark Type | Fissured |
| Distribution | It is native primarily to the Savanna and Sahel of Africa (especially Sudan), but also occurring in the Middle East. | Bark Details | Bark grey to black or dark brown, rough, fissured or smooth. young branchlets densely pubescent or glabrous to subglabrous and red to brown. |
| Distribution in Haryana | Bhiwani, Faridabad, Fatehabad, Gurgaon, Hisar, Jind, Karnal, Kurukshetra, M. Garh, Mewat, Palwal, Panipat, Rewari, Sirsa | Origin | Exotic |
| Leaf Type | Compound | ||
| Leaf Arrangement | Alternate (leaves born singly along stem) | ||
| Leaf Shape | Bi-pinnate | ||
| Description of Species | It is a small to medium-sized evergreen tree or shrub that grows up to 21 m tall; well-developed multiple boles support a flat-topped or rounded, spreading crown; bark grey to black or dark brown, rough, fissured or smooth; young branchlets densely pubescent or glabrous to subglabrous and red to brown; spines paired, 2 types-long, straight and white, or short, brownish and hooked; they range from 1.2 to 8 cm in length. Leaves glabrous to densely pubescent, glandular, pinnae 2-10 pairs; leaflets 4-22 pairs per pinnae, linear to linear oblong. Inflorescence globose heads; peduncle white, pubescent, 0.4-2.5 cm long, with involucel on the lower half; flowers white or pale yellowish-white, sessile or shortly pedicellate, scented, 0.5-1.1 cm in diameter, on axillary peduncles; calyx 1-2 mm long; corolla 1.5-2.5 mm long. Pods variable, indehiscent, spirally twisted or rarely almost straight. | Leaf Details | Leaves glabrous to densely pubescent, glandular, short at 1.25-3.75 cm long; petiole 0.2-0.9 cm long, with a gland; rachis 0.3-2 cm long, glabrous to densely pubescent, with a small gland at the junction of the apical pair of pinnae; pinnae 2-10 pairs; leaflets 4-22 pairs per pinnae, 0.5-4 (6 max.) x 0.2-1 mm, glabrous to densely pubescent on the underside; margins with or without cilia, linear to linear oblong. |
