Common Name: Matara Tea

General Information

Senna auriculata is a shrub or small tree growing up to 7 metres tall. The bole can be 20cm in diameter[].
A multi-purpose plant with a wide range of local uses for food, medicines and to supply a range of commodities. It was at one time a major source of tannins, especially in southern India. The plant is cultivated in India, Ghana, and Tanzania, and is often grown as an ornamental[, ].

Known Hazards

The plant contains poisonous substances[]. The bark, flowers, and seeds contain pyrrolizidine alkaloids, suspected of hepatotoxic properties[].
The stem bark is used to stupefy fish[].

Botanical References

Range

E. Asia - India, Sri Lanka, Myanmar.

Habitat

Woodland and wooded grassland at elevations up to 600 metres[].

Properties

Edibility Rating
Medicinal Rating
Other Uses Rating
Habit	Tree
Height	5.00 m
Cultivation Status	Cultivated, Ornamental, Wild

Cultivation Details

A plant mainly of dry regions in the tropics, though it is also able to tolerate much wetter conditions. It grows best in areas where the mean annual temperature is in the range 16 - 27°c and can tolerate a mean annual precipitation as low as 400mm, or up to 4,300 mm[].
Requires a position in full sun[]. Tolerant of many soil types, including saline, but prefers a fairly rich, well-drained soil[].
Plants are fairly fast-growing and can reach a height of about 3 metres with 35mm stem diameter within 2 years; and a height of about 5 metres with 70mm stem diameter within 4 years[].
Plants respond well to coppicing[].
Plants can be harvested for tannins and dyestuff from the third year onwards, with the plants being coppiced annually[].
Flowering and fruiting is often almost throughout the year, though there can be periods of increased flowering at times of the monsoon[].
Although many species within the family Fabaceae have a symbiotic relationship with soil bacteria, this species is said to be devoid of such a relationship and therefore does not fix atmospheric nitrogen[].

Edible Uses

Some caution should be exercised when eating this plant due to reports of toxicity[].
Young leaves - occasionally eaten[]. A famine food[].
The leaves are made into a refreshing drink[]. The dried leaves are used to make a tea[, ].

Young pods - occasionally eaten[]. A famine food[].

Young flowers - occasionally eaten[]. A famine food[].
The dried flowers are used to make a coffee substitute[, , ].

A fermented mixture of pounded bark and dissolved molasses is used as an alcoholic beverage[].

Medicinal

The plant has a long tradition of use in local medicine, with the leaves, flowers, seeds, roots, and bark all being utilized[].
Modern research has demonstrated the presence of various medically active compounds in the plant[].
Saponin and the cardiac glucoside sennapicrin are reported from the roots[].
The bark, flowers, and seeds contain pyrrolizidine alkaloids, suspected of hepatotoxic properties. However, in experiments, leaf extracts have been shown to alleviate the effects of liver injury caused by alcohol[].
Extracts of dried flowers have shown significant hypoglycaemic effect, supporting the traditional use of the plant as a treatment for diabetes[].

The roots and bark are astringent and are used for gargles, as an alterative, and to cure skin diseases, eye troubles and rheumatism[].

A decoction of the flowers and the seeds is recommended for diabetes[].

The seeds are used to cure eye diseases, gonorrhoea and gout[].

The leaves and fruits serve as an anthelmintic and diuretic[].

In Tanzania the plant is used to treat impotence, which may be related to diabetes[].

Agroforestry Uses:

The plant is utilized for green manuring (India)[].
It is used for revegetating erodible soils and has proved very effective in reclaiming sodic soils which have been dressed with gypsum[].

Other Uses

The bark yields tannin[]. The bark of plants 3 years old or more contains 15 - 24% of tannin on a dry weight basis[].

A black dye is obtained from the bark[].
A fast yellow dye is obtained from the flowers[].
The flower buds are used in the galling process prior to dyeing cotton cloth and chintzes red, pink or purple with madder roots (Rubia cordifolia L.)[].
The boiled seeds are an important ingredient in indigo vats, where specific bacterial fermentation ensures the reduction of insoluble indigo into the soluble leuco-indigo, allowing textile fibres to be impregnated by the dye solution. The seeds serve as a source of sugars to keep the fermentation process going[].

A fibre is obtained from the inner bark[]. The bark fibre can be made into rope[, ]

Branches are used as chewing sticks and toothbrushes[].

The wood does not reach a volume adequate for timber, but sometimes handles of small tools are made from it[].
A most curious use of the plant is reported from India. It is believed that branches were formerly used in the fabrication of wootz Damascus steel. They were added to the crucible and heated with the ore to obtain the chemical composition that gave the steel its beautiful patterning[].

Propagation

Seed - it has a hard seedcoat and needs scarification before sowing to speed up germination. This can usually be done by pouring a small amount of nearly boiling water on the seeds (being careful not to cook them!) and then soaking them for 12 - 24 hours in warm water. By this time they should have imbibed moisture and swollen - if they have not, then carefully make a nick in the seedcoat (being careful not to damage the embryo) and soak for a further 12 hours.
Cuttings.

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