Indian-plum

Names and Synonyms

Common Names

• Indian-plum
• Madagascar-plum
• batoko-plum
• governor's-plum
• Batoka Plum
• Batoka-Plum
• Flacourtia
• Governor's Plum
• Mauritius-Plum
• Rhodesian-Plum
• governors-plum

Scientific Names

Accepted name

Synonyms

• Flacourtia gambecola
• Flacourtia balansae
• Flacourtia afra
• Flacourtia kirkiana
• Flacourtia elliptica
• Flacourtia lenis
• Flacourtia lucida
• Flacourtia parvifolia
• Flacourtia perrottetiana
• Flacourtia obcordata
• Flacourtia sapida
• Flacourtia sepiaria
• Flacourtia sepiaria var. innocua
• Flacourtia rotundifolia
• Flacourtia thorelii
• Stigmarota africana
• Stigmarota edulis
• Xylosma elliptica
• Gmelina indica
• Gmelina javanica
• Flacourtia indica var. innocua
• Flacourtia ramontchi var. renvoizei
• Myroxylon dicline
• Verlangia indica
• Flacourtia heterophylla
• Flacourtia hilsenbergii
• Flacourtia hirtiuscula
• Flacourtia frondosa

Regional and Traditional Names

Sources: Wikidata, Catalogue of Life

Taxonomical Classification

This plant belongs to the kingdom Plantae within the phylum Streptophyta and the class Equisetopsida. It is further classified under the subclass Magnoliidae, the order Malpighiales, and the family Salicaceae. Finally, its specific taxonomic placement is within the genus Flacourtia.

Sources: The World Checklist of Vascular Plants (WCVP)

Distribution

This plant exhibits a specific geographical distribution concentrated within the tropical regions of the African continent. In West-Central Tropical Africa, it can be found growing in the countries of Burundi, Congo, and Rwanda. Its presence is also well-documented within the vast territory of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Furthermore, the species extends its reach into Northeast Tropical Africa. Specifically, this particular region includes the nation of Chad as part of its natural habitat.

Sources: The World Checklist of Vascular Plants (WCVP)

Botanical Identification

Ecology

The ecology of Flacourtia indica is characterized by its ability to thrive across a diverse range of environmental settings, primarily occupying drier forest edges, wooded grasslands or woodlands, clump bushland, coastal evergreen bushland, and riverine habitats. This adaptability allows the species to occupy a broad altitudinal gradient, ranging from sea level (0 m AMSL) up to a maximum elevation of 1555 m AMSL, with a mean elevational range of approximately 850 m AMSL.

Elevational range max:

1555 m AMSL

Elevational range mean:

850 m AMSL

Elevational range min:

0 m AMSL

Habitat :

drier forest edges, wooded grassland or woodland, clump bushland, coastal evergreen bushland, riverine

Life history

The life history of Flacourtia indica is characterized by its nature as a perennial plant, ensuring its long-term presence within its ecological niche. As a phanerophyte, it maintains its photosynthetic organs on elevated stems above the ground level, a structural strategy that aids in its growth and survival. The plant exhibits a deciduous habit, undergoing seasonal leaf shedding which often serves as an adaptation to environmental fluctuations or dry periods. This combination of a long-lived lifecycle, an elevated growth form, and seasonal deciduousness defines its fundamental biological rhythm and survival strategy in the wild.

Deciduousness :

deciduous

Life form :

phanerophyte

Lifecycle :

perennial

Morphology

The morphology of Flacourtia indica is characterized by a woody growth form that can manifest as either a shrub or a tree. As a self-supporting plant, it does not function as a climber (such as a liana or vine) or an epiphyte, maintaining a strictly terrestrial existence rather than being aquatic or semiaquatic. It is an independent organism, lacking parasitic tendencies. In terms of stature, the plant exhibits significant variability in height, with individual specimens ranging from a minimum of 0.2 m to a maximum of 15.23 m, resulting in an average plant height of approximately 4.83 m.

Aquatic :

terrestrial

Climber :

self-supporting

Epiphyte :

terrestrial

Growth form :

tree

Growth form :

shrub

Parasite :

independent

Plant height max:

15.23 m

Plant height mean:

4.83333333333333 m

Plant height min:

0.2 m

Woodiness :

woody

Physiology

The physiology of Flacourtia indica is characterized by its ability to thrive in diverse tropical and subtropical environments through efficient resource acquisition and metabolic adaptation. As a woody perennial, its physiological processes are driven by robust photosynthetic mechanisms that allow for rapid biomass production in humid climates. Regarding its nutrient cycling capabilities, the plant is not a nitrogen fixer, meaning it does not possess the specialized symbiotic relationship with nitrogen-fixing bacteria (such as Rhizobium) required to convert atmospheric nitrogen into usable forms; instead, it relies on the uptake of nitrates and ammonium from the soil through an extensive root system. The plant exhibits significant tolerance to varying soil moisture levels, employing stomatal regulation to manage transpiration rates and prevent desiccation during dry spells. Its metabolic pathways are optimized for high light intensity, supporting a high rate of carbon assimilation, while its vascular system is highly efficient at transporting water and minerals from the rhizosphere to the canopy to maintain turgor pressure and facilitate nutrient distribution.

Nitrogen fixer :

no

Reproduction

The reproduction of Flacourtia indica is characterized by a flowering cycle that can vary significantly, with a primary flowering window typically beginning in March and concluding in April, though the timing is noted as variable across different months of the year. The plant relies on cross-pollination, as self-fertilization is documented to be absent. The resulting seeds exhibit a notable range in mass, reflecting diverse reproductive outcomes; the seed mass ranges from a minimum of 0.0096 g to a maximum of 0.7836 g, with a calculated mean seed mass of approximately 0.131055714 g.

Flowering time :

Mar

Flowering time :

Apr

Seed mass max:

0.7836 g

Seed mass mean:

0.131055714 g

Seed mass min:

0.0096 g

Self fertilization :

absent

Sources: Global Inventory of Floras and Traits (GIFT)

Plant Parts

Flacourtia indica has 2 reported plant parts identified across 2 scientific publications and several other databases that are studied for medicinal purposes. The most consistently reported plant part include fruit, leaf.

Fruit

1. PeerJ

Leaf

1. Journal of basic and clinical physiology and pharmacology

Chemicals

Flacourtia indica has 6 reported phytochemicals identified across 2 scientific publications and several other databases. The most consistently reported chemicals include 10-Deacetylbaccatin, Flavonoid, Flavonoids, Linoleic acid ethyl ester, Saponins.

10-Deacetylbaccatin

1. Natural product research

Flavonoid

1. PeerJ

Flavonoids

1. BMC complementary medicine and therapies

Linoleic acid ethyl ester

1. BMC complementary and alternative medicine

Saponins

1. BMC complementary medicine and therapies

picrotoxinin

1. Natural product research

Activities

Flacourtia indica has 4 reported activities identified across 2 scientific publications and several other databases. The most consistently reported activities include Antioxidant, Antidiabetic, Antiproliferative, Cytotoxic.

Antioxidant

1. PeerJ
2. Journal of basic and clinical physiology and pharmacology

Antidiabetic

1. PeerJ

Antiproliferative

1. BMC complementary medicine and therapies

Cytotoxic

1. BMC complementary medicine and therapies

Conditions

Flacourtia indica has 8 reported investigations on conditions identified across 2 scientific publications and several other databases. The most consistently reported conditions include Acute lymphoblastic leukemia, Acute myeloid leukemia, Chronic myeloid leukemia, Plasmodium falciparum, cancer.

Acute lymphoblastic leukemia

1. Journal of ethnopharmacology

Acute myeloid leukemia

1. Journal of ethnopharmacology

Chronic myeloid leukemia

1. Journal of ethnopharmacology

Plasmodium falciparum

1. European journal of medicinal chemistry

Cancer

1. BMC complementary medicine and therapies

Dyslipidemia

1. Journal of basic and clinical physiology and pharmacology

Malaria

1. Phytomedicine : international journal of phytotherapy and phytopharmacology

Oxidative stress

1. Journal of basic and clinical physiology and pharmacology

Preparations

Flacourtia indica has 5 reported preparations identified across 2 scientific publications and several other databases. The most consistently reported preparations include extracts, bark, ethanol bark extract, methanolic crude extracts, methanolic extracts.

Extracts

1. Fitoterapia
2. BMC complementary medicine and therapies

Bark

1. Natural product research

Ethanol bark extract

1. BMC complementary and alternative medicine

Methanolic crude extracts

1. PeerJ

Methanolic extracts

1. BMC complementary medicine and therapies