Common Name: Guggul

General Information

Guggul is a much-branched, spiny, deciduous shrub growing up to 6 metres tall[].
A gum-resin obtained from the stems is widely used medicinally, as an incense, in perfumery etc. The tree is sometimes cultivated for its gum.
The tree is so heavily exploited in the wild that populations, especially in the south of its range, are being reduced. The Government of India has banned export of the gum in order to try and conserve stocks. The plant was at one time classified 'Vulnerable', but the current classification is 'Data Deficient' in the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species(2011)[].

Known Hazards

None known

Botanical References

Range

E. Asia - Pakistan, central and northern India.

Habitat

Rocky and open hilly areas or rough terrain and sandy tracts in warm and semiarid to arid areas at elevations from 250 - 1,800 metres[].

Properties

Conservation Status	Data Deficient
Edibility Rating
Medicinal Rating
Other Uses Rating
Habit	Deciduous Shrub
Height	4.00 m
Growth Rate	Slow
Self-fertile	No
Cultivation Status	Cultivated, Wild

Cultivation Details

A plant of arid and semi-arid areas in the tropics where it can be found at elevations from 250 - 1,800 metres. It is found in areas where the mean annual rainfall is within the range 225 - 500mm and the temperature ranges from 20 - 35°c[].
Requires a sunny position[]. Found in the wild in sandy and rocky soils[].
A slow growing plant, it takes 8 to 10 years to reach a height of 3 - 3.5 metres. Pruning or the removal of branches in the early stages of the plant's growth helps to achieve better growth, increases the girth of growing branches and thereby leads to better gum yield[].
The plant generally takes ten years to reach tapping maturity under the dry climatic conditions of its native environment[]. The yields are in the order of 200 - 500 gm of dry guggul per tree per season[].
Plants are dimorphic, one form having bisexual and male flowers, whilst the other has female flowers with staminodes[]. It is inferred that pollen grains from bisexual or male flowers, present on the first form of plants are needed for the production of normal fruits on plants with only female flowers[].

Edible Uses

A bitter, pungent gum is obtained from the bark[].

Medicinal

The resin is alterative, antiseptic, antispasmodic, aphrodisiac, astringent, carminative, demulcent, emmenagogue, expectorant and stomachic[, ]. It is used in the treatment of muscular rheumatism[]. The gum resin has been used extensively by Ayurvedic physicians for centuries to treat a wide variety of disorders[]. It is a natural health product, used primarily to reduce elevated blood cholesterol levels[]. It has been used for many years as a hypocholesterolemic agent in India, where it is has received prescription drug status, due to its high level of efficacy as determined by clinical trials[].

Agroforestry Uses:

The plant is sometimes grown as a barrier hedge[].

Other Uses

The tree is the source of Guggul or Indian Bdellium, a gum-resin that exudes from the branches. It is largely used as an incense and in perfumery[].
The thick branches are selected in winter and their bark incised to extract the oleo resin gum[]. The commercial product of the oleo-gum resin contains 58% resin along with mineral matter, 32.3% gum, 4.65% foreign organic matter and 1.45% aromatic essential oil[].

Young branches are used as a toothbrush to clean the teeth and maintain dental hygiene[].

Propagation

Seed -

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