Snowflake

Overview

Wrightia antidysenterica is native to Sri Lanka. The word 'Wrightia' is for William Wright (1735-1819), Scottish physician and botanist, who worked for many years in Jamaica, and classified hundreds of the native plants; 'antidysenterica' is Latin, anti-, against, dysintericus, pertaining to dysentery, referring to the medicinal qualities of the plant.The plant is harvested from the wild for local use as a medicine. It is used to treat digestive problems such as dysentery which is also known as Pravahika in Ayurveda. Often grown as an ornamental, valued especially for its year-round production of white flowers. 

Vernacular Names

Pudpitchaya (Thailand), Thu’ng mu’c nhuôm (Vietnamese), Dhudi (Hindi-India).

Agroecology

Prefers to grow in bright light, including full sun. It can tolerate part shade, but this will result in fewer flowers. In the right conditions, it will flower for most of the year. It also likes a well-drained loamy soil, preferably slightly acidic. It has a rather poor tolerance of salt spray. 

Morphology

• Roots - taproot system.
• Stem - the short and divaricate branches turn to chocolaty brown as it ages.
• Leaves - green, ovate to elliptic in shape, opposite arrangement, measuring about 2.5-6 cm long and 1.5-2.5 cm wide.
• Flower - white fragrant 5-petaled flowers with a yellow centre, star shaped measuring about 2.5 cm wide, corolla tube very slender and about 2-2.5 cm long.
• Fruit - a pod-liked follicle.

Cultivation

Propagated by seed (generative propagation), and stem cuttings (vegetative propagation).

Chemical Constituents

Benzoxazinoid glycosides, 2-Aminobenzoyl O-β-D-apiofuranosyl-(1→6)-β-D-glucopyranoside, megastigmane glycosides, flavonoid glycosides, wrightiaionosides A-B, simple aromatic glycosides, indole diglycoside, and lignan.

Traditional Medicinal Uses

• In Nepal, milky juice is used to halt bleeding.
• Oil extracted from fresh leaves has anti-inflammatory, analgesic and anti-pyretic properties and used for treating psoriasis.
• The bark is antiinflammatory and antimicrobial. It is used in the treatment of dysentery.The juice extracted from the bark is administered for mouth sores. The dried and powdered bark is rubbed over the body in the treatment of dropsy.
• Roots and leaves are pounded in water and used as a treatment for fever.