Citation: Pandanus kaida Kurz, J. Asiat. Soc. Bengal 38: 148. 1869; Manilal et al., New Botanist 11: 1201. 1984; Sunil & Sivadasan, Fl. Alappuzha Dist. 718. 2009.

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Description: A large shrub, in cultivation usually kept short, but when freely growing becoming treelike with an erect trunk 2-4 m tall, branched above; prop-roots basal, rather few and short. Mature leaves to 3-4 m long, rarely longer, and upto 9 cm wide, commonly 2-3 m x 6-8 cm, linear-ensiform, gradually narrowed to the long flagelliform apex, coriaceous, green above and below, not or scarcely glaucous, erect-ascending, rather stiff, the tips of older leaves abruptly downturned. Margins and midrib (beneath) stoutly armed. Margins near base with forward-curved sharp teeth to 5-6 mm long and 3-12 mm apart; near the middle of the blade, with similar but more appressed, more crowded, slightly shorter teeth; near apex, the teeth much smaller, 0.5 mm long, but wide-spaced, mostly 5-10 mm apart. Midrib teeth nearest the leaf-base blunt, short, erect or slightly reflexed, 10-20 mm apart, these followed by a series of longer, sharper, reflexed teeth to 6 mm long; but from the middle of the leaf and beyond, all midrib teeth forwardly curved, shorter(c. 4 mm) and mostly 10-15 mm apart; near leaf apex the midrib teeth similar in size and shape to those of adjacent margin, but somewhat more distant, longitudinal veins fairly conspicuous, especially on the undersurface, in larger mature leaves totalling about 60-65 on either side of the midrib, which is slightly salient. Cross veins nearly invisible. Inflorescences terminal and bracteate. Female inflorescence pedunculate, the peduncle upto 40-50 cm long, at the apex nearly 2 cm thick, trigonal, bearing several (3-5)foliaceous bracts. Cephalia solitary or sometimes 2, 3(or rarely upto 7) borne together spicately, each subtended by several (when solitary or terminal) or one, (when lateral)green to whitish spathes with leaflike apices (lower spathes)or acute, white apices(upper spathes) similar to those of the male inflorescence. Staminate inflorescence a large raceme or spike or spikes, each lateral spike 8-11 cm long, 2.5-3 cm thick, subsessile, subtended by a white spathe. Spikes composed of very numerous rather densely crowded stemonophores, these subterete, about 7-8 mm long, 1.5-2 mm thick, nude to the apex and there bearing upto 23 erect, crowded, white stamens, each on a short filament 0.5-2 mm long, the anther linear or slightly curved, 3.6-4 mm long, hastate at base, acute at apex with an apiculum 0.5-0.7 mm long; all filaments closely crowded at apex of stemonophore. Pollen grains minutely spinulose. Cephalia(terminal or solitary) oblong-ellipsoid, rounded-trigonal, about one and a half times longer than wide, up to 23 x 15 cm, but sometimes smaller and more globular(when lateral on spicate inflorescences), finally pendulous, composed of numerous mostly 1-4-celled phalanges. Phalanges cuneate, upto 45-50 mm long, 10-20(-24) mm thick, usually 5-7 angled, apex low-pyramidal, centrally produced into the 1-4 short, stocky styles, these erect or oblique, commonly 1-2 mm high and 1-3 mm broad, the stigmatic surface brown, centrally grooved, facing each other(i.e.centripetal)when 2 or more together, often wider than long, rather close-set, rarely over 5 mm apart; individual carpel apices barely distinguishable by the shallow apical sutures(less than 1 mm deep)separating them. Endocarp subcentral, reddish, osseous, 1-4 celled(usually 2-celled), 12-15 mm long, the outer walls 1-2 mm thick, the seed chambers about 8-10 mm long. Upper mesocarp cavernose(as many chambers as carpels), medullose pithy and, peripherally, slightly fibrous, within, about 13-15 mm long and to 7 mm wide; lower mesocarp fibrous-fleshy. Pericarp at apex firm, upto 2 mm thick below, very thin.

Habit: Shrub

Flowering & Fruiting: September-November

District(s): Alappuzha, Thrissur

Medicinal:

Habitat: in marshy areas and swamps

Distribution: India

Aquatic: Yes

Epiphyte(s): No

Saprophyte: No

Stem parasite: No

Root parasite: No

Flower colour(s):

Weed: No

Monocot/Dicot: Monocotyledonous Plants

Exotic: No

Garden: No

Edible: No

Vegetable: No

Endemic to:

IUCN status:

Altitude:

Localities:

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