Genus of legumes
Butea is a genus of flowering plants belonging to the pea family, Fabaceae. It includes five species native to the Indian Subcontinent, Indochina, Tibet, and southern China. It is sometimes considered to have only two species, "B. monosperma" and "B. superba", or is expanded to include four or five.
"Butea monosperma" is used for timber, resin, fodder, herbal medicine, and dyeing.
"Butea" is also a host to the lac insect, which produces natural lacquer.
Taxonomy.
"Butea" is named after John Stuart, 3rd Earl of Bute (1713-1792), member of parliament, prime minister for one year, and a patron of botany. William Roxburgh erected the genus "Butea" in 1795, but it became a nomen invalidum. Carl Willdenow validated the name "Butea" in 1802.
Uses.
"Butea monosperma", called kiṃśukha in Sanskrit, is used in Ayurvedic medicine to treat various symptoms.
Species.
Forty-two names have been published in "Butea", but forty of these are either synonyms or names of species that have been transferred to other genera. Five species are currently accepted.
References.
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