Full-length paper Asian Agri-History Vol. 19, No. 1, 2015 (5–32) 5 Nirgundi (Vitex negundo) – Nature’s Gift to Mankind SC Ahuja1, Siddharth Ahuja2, and Uma Ahuja3 1. Rice Research Station, Kaul 136 021, Kaithal, Haryana, India 2. Department of Pharmacology, Vardhman Mahavir Medical College, Safdarjung, New Delhi, India 3. College of Agriculture, CCS Haryana Agricultural University, Kaul 136 021, Haryana, India (email: [email protected]) Abstract Vitex negundo (nirgundi, in Sanskrit and Hindi) is a deciduous shrub naturalized in many parts of the world. Some consider it to have originated in India and the Philippines. There is no reference to nirgundi in the Vedas, while several references occur in post-Vedic works. In India, the plant has multifarious uses: basketry, dyeing, fuel, food, stored-grain protectant, fi eld pesticide, growth promoter, manure, as medicine for poultry, livestock, and humans. It is used in all systems of treatment – Ayurveda, Unani, Siddha, Homeopathy, and Allopathy. It is commonly used in folk medicine in India, Bangladesh, China, Philippines, Sri Lanka, and Japan. True to its meaning in Sanskrit (that which keeps the body free from all diseases), it is used to treat a plethora of ailments, ranging from headache to migraine, from skin affections to wounds, and swelling, asthmatic pains, male and female sexual and reproductive problems. Referred to as sindhuvara in Ayurveda, nirgundi has been used as medicine since ancient times. It is taken in a variety of ways, both internally and externally. The whole plant, leaves, leaf oil, roots, fruits, and seeds are administered in the treatment of specifi c diseases. However, in Ayurveda, the leaves, roots, and bark are the most important parts. The present paper deals with the distribution and history of nirgundi, and its uses in rituals, religious rites, as an insecticide and as medicine. The paper also presents a scientifi c validation of its traditional agricultural uses as storage, fi eld, and household insecticide, as well as pharmacological evidences on its use in folk medicine and Ayurveda. The word Vitex is derived from the Latin Verbenaceae. Later on, Vitex along with ‘vieo’ (meaning to tie or bind) because of several other genera was transferred from the fl exible nature of its stems and twigs. Of Verbenaceae to Lamiaceae in the 1990s on the 270 known species of the genus, about the basis of phylogenetic studies of DNA 18 are in cultivation and are referred to as sequences (Chantaranothai, 2011). ‘chaste tree’, or simply Vitex. The genus was established by Linnaeus in 1753 with four Chaste tree species are native to the species: Vitex agnus-castus, V. negundo, warm regions of the Old World. Vitex V. pinnata, and V. trifolia in the family agnus-castus grows naturally from the 6 Nirgundi (Vitex negundo) Mediterranean Sea eastward to central Asia. courses in wastelands and mixed open The leaves are composed of fi ve to seven forests. It often grows gregariously and is radiating leafl ets. Vitex negundo, the fi ve- abundant on sandy soils (Chowdhury et leaved chaste tree is more cold hardy than al., 2009). the Agnus species. Vitex occurs in Kenya, Tanzania, Mozambique, Madagascar (in Three varieties of V. negundo L. are Africa), and in Afghanistan, Bangladesh, currently recognized: (1) Vitex negundo L. Bhutan, Cambodia, China, India, Indonesia, var. cannabifolia (Siebold & Zucc.) Hand.- Malaysia, Myanmar, Nepal, Pakistan, Mazz. is prevalent in China (including Hong Philippines, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Taiwan Kong), India, Nepal, and Thailand; (2) Vitex and Vietnam (in Asia) (http://www.ars-grin. negundo L. var. incisa (Lam.) C.B. Clarke gov/cgi-bin/npgs/html/taxon.pl?41831). occurs in China, India, Indonesia, and the It is also found in similar habitats along Philippines; and (3) Vitex negundo L. var. the seashore throughout Mauritius, Japan negundo is found in China, Japan, Taiwan and southward through Malaya to tropical and in the Nallamala Hills (India). One may Australia and Polynesia. visit the website <http://fl orida.plantatlas. usf.edu/Plant.aspx?id=1485#synonym> for Vitex trifolia is native to southeastern Asia synonymy. and Melanesia (Meena et al., 2010). Vitex trifolia, the three-leaved chaste tree, also Habitat and cultivation called the Indian privet or Indian wild-pepper has similar properties of V. negundo. Vitex Vitex negundo is a much-branched shrub trifolia occurs in India along the seashore, up to 5 m tall or sometimes a small, known in Hindi as ‘pani-ki-sanbhalu’ and slender tree with thin, gray bark. Leaves ‘sufed-sanbhalu’ and ‘Lagunding-dagat’ in are palmately compound, 3–5 foliate; the Philippines (Kulkarni, 2011). leafl ets are lanceolate; margins are entire or crenate; terminal leafl ets are 5–10 cm Some consider Vitex negundo being native × 1–3 cm; lateral leafl ets are smaller; all to India and the Philippines (Orwa et al., nearly glabrous above, whitish tomentose 2009) and this fact can be corroborated on beneath and aromatic when crushed the basis of availability of a name in almost (Fig. 1). Flowers are bluish-purple, small, in all the local dialects and languages in the peduncled cymes, forming large, terminal, Philippines and India (Table 1). In India, the often compound, pyramidal panicles. In prevailing Vitex species include V. negundo, central India, fl owering occurs between June V. glabrata, V. leucoxylon, V. penduncularis, and December and fruiting from September V. pinnata, and V. trifolia (Kulkarni, 2011). to February. The fruit is a succulent drupe, Wild nirgundi (V. negundo) plants are black when ripe, 5–6 mm in diameter. Seeds found almost everywhere though mostly on are 5–6 mm in diameter. The mature seeds wastelands from the seashore to an altitude sown in nursery beds normally germinate of about 1,500 m in the outer Himalayas. within 2–3 weeks. Four- to six-month-old It thrives in humid places or along water seedlings are used for transplanting in the Asian Agri-History Vol. 19, No. 1, 2015 7 Table 1. Names of Vitex negundo in/among various languages/tribes. Language/ Language/ region/tribe Name region/tribe Name English Chinese chaste tree, fi ve-leaved Kannada Lakkingida, lakkigida, nakkilu, chaste tree, Indian privet nekki, nekka, nakkigida, lakki, Sanskrit Nirgundi, sindhuvara, indrasursa, karillalaki (Dharwad), bilenekki indranika, sinduka, nisinda, (Mysore), nochi, sinduka, shephali, indrani, nirgundika, sinduvara renuka, sindhuvaram, sinduya, Kumaon Sindwar, kharwar, shiwali, simali; sugandhika, surasa, vrikshaha, fruit = fi lfi l = bari nirgunda, shveta sephalika, Marathi Nirgundi, nisind, nigudi, ligur suvaha, nirgundi, nilika (kali (Konkan), samhalu (Amravati), newri), nilapushpi, nilanirgundi, lingur, nirgunda, nirgur, lingur shvetasurasa, bhootveshi (white- Malayalam Vellanocchi, vennocchi, indrani, fl owered newri), svetapuspa karinocchi, nocchi, vennochi, Assamese Pasutia, aggla-chita, pochatia, velnochchi aslok Manipuri Urik shibi Bengali Nisinda, samalu, nirgundi, Oriya Beyguna, begundia, nirgundi, sinduari, beguna, nishinda, laguni (Malkangiri), begna, nishinde beguniya Mumbai Katri, lingur, nargunda, nirgundi, Punjabi Banna, marwan, moraun, nirgur, nisinda, shiwari morann, sanoke, swanjan, shawar, Gujarati Nagoda, nagaol, nirgari bankahu, marwa, mawa, maura, Himachal Bana (Parvati valley) mora, biuna, binna, torbanna, Pradesh shwari, maura, torban, wana; root Hindi Bheudi, mewri, nengar, ningori, and leaves = amalu; fruits = fi lfi l nigandi, nirgandi, nirgundi, = bari nirgunda, nisinda, panikisambhalu, Telugu Vaavili, vaavilu, tellavavaati, sambhal, sambhalu, sanbhalu, tellavavilli, vaavilu, chirvaavili, samhalu, sanghalu, saubhalu, mella-vavili, vavalipadu, veyala, sawbhalu, shambalu, shriwari, vavilli, nalla vavili, vavilipadu newri, sanbhalu, shawalu, shiwali, Tamil Vellai-nochi, nirkkundi, shivari, shiwari, sinuar, sinduar, venmochi, notchi, nirnochi, sindhuca, sinduari, siwain, sirunochi, nirrukundi, vennochi, bannah, bana, banna, siwali, villai-noch-chi, nochchi, nir- nochi, nochi wana, banha, banana, veeru dhayad, nirgud, negad, veeru, Urdu Sambhalu, tukhm sambhalu kali-nirgundi, tarvan, shimalu, Uttar Somi (Jaunsar Bawar hills), mala shinduca, shiwari, sinduari, khanni Pradesh (Moradabad) (Rajasthan) continued 8 Nirgundi (Vitex negundo) Table 1. continued Language/ Language/ region/tribe Name region/tribe Name Uttarakhand Sambhaalu Bangladesh Sarsa, samalu, chasta, nirgundi (Garhwal) China Bugingiab Kuruku Nirgudi Guam Laoundi, lagundi Kol Ehuri, sindwar, hobaro, sinduari Javanese Katumpa empah Lodha Bengunia-bo Malay Lenggundi, legundi, lagundi, Gond Nirgiri lemuning, muning, demundi, Oraon Sinduhi lemuni Santhal Bengunia, luguni, sindwar (Chhota Myanmar Kiyow-bhan-bin, kiyuban-bin Nagpur), sinduari (Bihar) Nepal Gadaki, simali Asurs Bihar Sinduar Pakistan Marvandaey (Buner), nirgud Arabic Aslaq, aslag, fanangasht, (Margallah hills), kalgari (Siran zukhamsatilouraq, zuhamsate- valley) asabea Persian Sisban, panj-angasht, banj- Philippines Lagundi (Ibn., Tag., Bik., P. Bis.), angasht, panjngust (Fazan Khist) dabtan (If.), dangla (Ilk.), kamalan Pusthtu Marwandai, mehrwan, warwande (Tag.), liñgei (Bon.), limo-limo Sri Lanka Nilnikka, nika, sadu-nikka (Ilk.), sagarai (Bag.), turagay Vietnam Ngutrao (Bis.), agno-casto (Span.) Figure 1. Nirgundi (Vitex negundo): (left) plant in fl owering stage; and (right) infl orescence. Asian Agri-History Vol. 19, No. 1, 2015 9 fi eld. It can be reproduced readily from shoot BCE), Kautilya’s Arthashashtra (321–296 cuttings. Vitex negundo roots are strong and BCE),