Forest Utilisation Chapter 16: Gums, Resins, Oleo-resins, Animal and Miscellaneous Products, Drugs, Spices and Poisons
Forest Utilisation Notes · Chapter 16
Chapter 16: Minor Forest Products III
Gums, resins, oleo-resins and gum resins with their sources, dammars, animal and mineral products, tendu leaves, soap nuts and bead seeds, and the forest drug plants, spices, edible products and poisons.
1. Gums, resins and their kinds
Gums and resins are exuded by plants partly as a normal process and partly as a result of disease or injury, mainly from the stem. Almost none come from cultivated plants.
GumA gum is a substance of more or less sticky nature or one which was at one time of a sticky or plastic consistency.
Gum-resinsClosely related to true gums; they differ from true gums in that they also contain some resin and so do not dissolve in water completely.
Oleo-resinOleo-resin is the name given to resins which contain a percentage of natural essential oils.
| Product | Water | Organic solvents |
|---|---|---|
| True gum | Dissolves, or swells into mucilage | Insoluble |
| Resin | Neither dissolves nor softens | More or less soluble (ether, alcohol, turpentine) |
| Gum-resin | Partly soluble | Partly soluble |
| Oleo-resin | Insoluble | Soluble; contains essential oil |
When oleo-resins include some gum they are called gum oleo-resins (for example salai gum).
2. Gums
| Gum | Source | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| True gum arabic | Acacia senegal | Small thorny tree of Punjab, UP, Rajasthan; production negligible |
| Indian gum arabic (babul gum) | Acacia nilotica | Calico printing, sizing, paper, sweetmeats |
| Khair gum | Acacia catechu | Better substitute for gum arabic than babul gum |
| Dhaura (ghatti) gum | Anogeissus latifolia | Sizing paper, calico printing |
| Katira gum | Sterculia urens, Cochlospermum religiosum, Bombax ceiba | Swells but does not dissolve; substitutes for gum tragacanth (no Indian tree gives true tragacanth) |
| Jhingan gum | Lannea coromandelica | Tapped for 5 years, then rested |
| Gum kino | Pterocarpus marsupium (bijasal) | Ruby red, about 75% tannic acid; astringent |
| Bengal kino | Butea monosperma (palas) | Similar to gum kino |
| Semla gum | Bauhinia retusa | Like gum arabic |
Memory trick: Karaya is Katira from Sterculia; ghatti is Dhaura from Anogeissus; kino from bijasal.
3. Resins, dammars and gum resins
Commercial resins are collected from artificial wounds. Pine resin (turpentine and rosin) is covered in Chapter 19. Of the pines, only chir is regularly tapped. Resins from broad-leaved trees that solidify on exposure are sold as dammar; true dammar comes from Agathis, a conifer not found in India.
| Product | Source |
|---|---|
| Black dammar | Canarium strictum (white dhup) |
| Rock dammar | Hopea odorata (Andamans) |
| White dammar, piney resin, Indian copal | Vateria indica (Western Ghats) |
| Ral (sal resin) | Shorea robusta; incense, paints |
| Salai gum (gum oleo-resin) | Boswellia serrata; incense, medicine |
| Gurjan oil (oleo-resin) | Dipterocarpus turbinatus; lithographic ink, anti-corrosive paint |
| Gamboge (gum resin) | Garcinia morella |
| Guggul (gum resin) | Commiphora mukul; incense, medicine |
4. Animal, mineral and miscellaneous products
| Product | Source and notes |
|---|---|
| Honey and wax | Wild bees Apis dorsata and A. indica |
| Silk | Wild silkworms on Bombax, jamun, Terminalia alata and Ficus (tasar) |
| Horns, skins, ivory | From animals found dead or killed under rules |
| Tendu (bidi) leaves | Diospyros melanoxylon; premier bidi wrapper; nationalised with departmental collection |
| Other leaves | Bauhinia racemosa (bidis), Bauhinia vahlii and Butea (leaf plates) |
| Soap nuts | Sapindus mukorossi (north) and S. trifoliatus (south); saponins |
| Shikakai pods | Acacia concinna; washing hair and silk |
| Marking nut | Semecarpus anacardium; indelible marking ink with lime |
| Sola pith | Aeschynomene aspera; sola hats and models |
| Bead seeds | Abrus, Adenanthera, Coix (Job's tears), Elaeocarpus (rudraksha), Putranjiva |
| Bat guano | Rich in phosphates and nitrates; manure |
| Edible bird's nests | Andaman and Nicobar |
| Minerals | Stone, road metal, mica, limestone, gravel, slate; by lease or auction |
5. Drugs
| Part | Plant | Drug or use |
|---|---|---|
| Root | Rauvolfia serpentina (sarpagandha) | Reserpine; lowers blood pressure |
| Root | Podophyllum hexandrum | Purgative; tried against cancer |
| Root | Saussurea lappa (kuth) | Asthma, incense, perfumery |
| Root | Dioscorea deltoidea | Diosgenin for sex hormones and cortisone |
| Root | Picrorhiza kurrooa | Picrorhizin; stomachic |
| Root | Glycyrrhiza glabra | Liquorice |
| Root | Berberis aristata | Rasaunt extract |
| Root | Acorus calamus (bach), Aconitum, Valeriana, Asparagus (safed musli) | Various |
| Bark | Cinchona | Quinine (plantations, not under Forest Department) |
| Bark | Holarrhena antidysenterica | Dysentery |
| Flower and seed | Artemisia brevifolia and A. maritima | Santonin, against intestinal worms |
| Seed | Strychnos nux-vomica | Strychnine |
| Seed | Plantago ovata | Isabgol husk |
| Flower heads | Pyrethrum | Pyrethrin insecticide |
| Leaf | Ephedra gerardiana | Ephedrine for asthma |
| Leaf | Atropa acuminata, Datura, Hyoscyamus | Atropine, hyoscyamine |
6. Spices, edibles and poisons
- Cardamom: Elettaria cardamomum (small cardamom, revenue to Forest Department); Amomum subulatum (greater cardamom).
- Pepper: Piper longum (long pepper), Piper nigrum (black pepper).
- Wild turmeric (Curcuma aromatica) and cinnamon (Cinnamomum zeylanicum).
- Edible fruits: mango, lakoocha, jamun, walnut, ber, chilgoza (Pinus gerardiana), wild figs.
PoisonsPoisons are defined as materials which by contact with an organism, interfere with its well-being and function in a way that causes disorder or death.
| Plant | Poison |
|---|---|
| Antiaris toxicaria | Arrow poison |
| Millettia pachycarpa | Rotenone insecticide; fish poison |
| Abrus precatorius | Abrin in seeds |
| Albizia procera, Barringtonia acutangula | Fish poisons |
7. Quick revision
- Gum dissolves or swells in water; resin does not, but dissolves in organic solvents.
- Oleo-resin = resin with essential oil. Gum resin = gum with some resin.
- True gum arabic: Acacia senegal. Ghatti: Anogeissus. Katira: Sterculia urens. Kino: Pterocarpus marsupium.
- White dammar = Vateria indica; black dammar = Canarium; rock dammar = Hopea.
- Tendu leaves (Diospyros melanoxylon) are nationalised.
- Reserpine: Rauvolfia. Diosgenin: Dioscorea. Ephedrine: Ephedra. Santonin: Artemisia. Strychnine: Strychnos.
- Rotenone: Millettia pachycarpa. Abrin: Abrus.
8. Interactive MCQ Quiz
16 questions. Tap an option to see the answer and explanation, then go to the next question.
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