Statue of Unity – Ek Bharat, Shreshtha Bharat Rain Forest Ektanagar

Leea indica

Syn. Leea sambucina

IUCN Red List Least Concern (LC)

Local name

  • Bandicoot Berry (English)
  • Kukur jihwa (Hindi)

Shrub type

Evergreen Deciduous
Family: Vitaceae
6m

Indicated uses

Medicinal Edible Ornamental Avenue Other

Flowering & fruiting

Flowering Fruiting

Key characters

Leea indica bark

Bark

Smooth to slightly rough, greyish-brown with numerous lenticels; young stems green to reddish.

Leea indica leaves

Leaves

The leaves are double compound or triple compound, 40-60 cm long, twice or thrice pinnate.

Leea indica flower

Flower

The leaflets are extremely variable in size and shape. The flowers are greenish-white. The fruit is small.

Leea indica fruit / seeds

Fruit / Seeds

Small, fleshy, globose berries about 6–10 mm in diameter. Green when young, turning bright red, then dark purple to black when ripe. Usually contains 4–6 seeds.

Leea indica

Did you know?

Named after James Lee, an 18th-century nurseryman, the genus was historically isolated in its own family, Leeaceae, due to unique floral traits, but modern genetic tracking places it inside the grape family (Vitaceae).

Distribution

World map showing distribution

Laccadive Islands, Western & Southern India, Sri Lanka.