Lodhra bark regulates the menstrual cycle.
Aagaaz Organisation from Pipalkoti of Chamoli district along with women groups planted 2,850 Lodhra saplings in the last monsoon.
The Lodhra tree is used in various Ayurvedic medicines and its various species possess a wide range of metabolites with potential medicinal value against many different diseases. The bark of the tree is used in many Ayurvedic formulations and is known as Cinchona bark in Europe. The bark is also used for making the Tilaka mark on the forehead. Hence the word Lodhra in Sanskrit is referred to as Tilaka which means propitious. The tree is found in most parts of India but an organisation in Uttarakhand has taken the initiative to preserve the tree.
Aagaaz Organisation from Pipalkoti of Chamoli district along with women groups associated with them from Kiruli, Malla Tangani, Sutol, Kanol, Sunali, Jumla and Naurakh villages had joined together and have planted 2,850 Lodhra saplings in the last monsoon. Out of them, around 250 plants have been preserved in the Bio Tourism Park in Pipalkoti. The seeds of the Lodhra tree are being collected from the forests and nurseries are being established. Jeevanti Welfare and Charitable Trust is also associated with the organisation in this initiative.
Social worker Sanjay Kunwar who is a resident of Chamoli district told Local that the Lodhra seeds are not easily available or stored. The black seeds ripe on the tree itself should be immediately soaked in lukewarm water and sown in sandy and loose soil. After this process, the seeds start converting themselves into a sapling within a month. “The saplings then become three inches tall, they should be kept in nursery bags for one year and sent for plantation in the next year,” he added.
He also explained that the Lodhra plant grows slowly for the first three years and then the speed increases during the next 5-7 years. The trees are cut down during the winter season for medicinal purposes. But the best seed plantation happens when birds, animals like monkeys and langurs eat the seed and drop them in the ground and are converted into trees.
Lodhra plants have medicinal components like flavonoids, tannin, vetiverol, lodhrol, lodhrin, epicatechin, betulinic acid, lodhricolic acid, betulinic acid, lodhroside which are present in the bark and root of this plant. The bark helps in improving bowel-related diseases, keeps progesterone and estrogen levels in the post and pre-menopausal phases in the bay, alleviates the symptoms of PCOS and regulates the menstrual cycle. It is also used as a treatment for ulcers.
