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Rauvolfia tetraphylla L., Sp. Pl. 208 1753. (syn. Rauvolfia canescens L. [Illegitimate]; Rauvolfia canescens var. glabra Müll. Arg.; Rauvolfia canescens var. intermedia Markgr.; Rauvolfia canescens var. tomentosa Müll. Arg.; Rauvolfia canescens var. typica Markgr.; Rauvolfia heterophylla Willd. ex Roem. & Schult.; Rauvolfia heterophylla var. puberula A. Gray; Rauvolfia hirsuta Jacq.; Rauvolfia hirsuta var. glabra (Müll. Arg.) Woodson; Rauvolfia latifolia var. minor Müll. Arg.; Rauvolfia odontophora Van Heurck & Müll.Arg.; Rauvolfia subpubescens L.; Rauvolfia tomentosa Jacq.);
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raau-FO-feeah — named in honour of Leonhard Rauwolf [↗], German physician, botanist, and traveller … Dave’s Botanary
tet-ruh-FIL-uh — four-leaved … Dave’s Botanary .
commonly known as: American serpentwood, be still tree, devil pepper, wild snakeroot • Bengali: বড় চন্দ্রিকা bara chandrika, গন্ধনকুলী gandhanakuli • Hindi: बड़ा चंद्रिका bara-chandrika • Kannada: ದೊಡ್ಡ ಚಂದ್ರಿಕೆ dodda chandrike, ನಾಲ್ಕೆಲೆ ಸರ್ಪಗಂಧ naalkele sarpagandha • Malayalam: കാട്ടമൽപ്പൊരി kaattamalpori, പാമ്പുംകൊല്ലി paambumkolli • Odia: ପାତାଳ ଗରୁଡ଼ patala garuda • Tamil: பாம்பு களாச் செடி paambu kalaach chedi • Telugu: పాపటాకు papataku • Tulu: ಸರ್ಪಗಂಧೊ sarpagandho
        Flora of Panipat- Rauvolfia tetraphylla from Herbal park Samalkha Panipat:
Rauvolfia tetraphylla from Herbal park Samalkha Panipat. Small Shrub about 3-5 ft high. Photo on 28-6-11 pls see the nomenclature of Forest deptt. This Herbal Park in Samalkha Panipat Dist Run by Forest deptt Haryana. Known as Bel Pattar aushdhiya Udhyan      Flora of Haryana: Rauvolfia tetraphylla from TDL Herbal Park Yamunanagar:
Rauvolfia tetraphylla from TDL Herbal Park Yamunanagar
The plant is a common weed in IIT Madras, CLRI and Guindy National park and elsewhere in Chennai.
Flora of Kaiga_ID_Please_15112011 PJ1: This is Rauvolfia tetraphylla. Thanks for the ID. Does this plant commonly grow on the beach side areas? Yes …, we both responded at the same time !!!
Flora of Haryana: Rauvolfia tetraphylla L. from Herbal Garden CCSHAU Hisar: A very common weed in IIT, Madras, Guindy National park and CLRI campuses, Chennai. … were an important cultivated Medicinal Plant
ID : Rauvolfia: Yes, it is Rauvolfia tetraphylla.
260713 ASP 130 : Attachments (1). 2 posts by 2 authors. Rauvolfia tetraphylla L.
Attached images are Rauvolfia tetraphylla L. collected from Kamrup district, Assam.
Date :14.08.2013
Location: Kamrup district, Assam
Family : Apocynaceae
Genus & species : Rauvolfia tetraphylla L.
Habitat: Grown on our college garden.
Habit : Shrub
Flower :White
FJ 14 051113 : Attachments (1). 2 posts by 2 authors.
Please ID this medicinal plant, a small shrub. Photo was taken in Sri Lanka in Nov 2012. Rauvolfia tetraphylla of Apocynaceae.
Please help me to identify this flower. Look like fruits of Rauvolfia tetraphylla. Rauvolfia tetraphylla.
Ex-situ Silviculture : Rauvolfia tetraphylla L. : Attachments (5). 3 posts by 2 authors. Lovely pictures …
15May2014NVR Shrub for ID : 2 posts by 2 authors. Attachments (3).
I came across this 0.5m tall shrub in Goa. Rauvolfia tetraphylla L. [Apocynaceae].
medicinal plant for ID22082014VRW 3, is it Rauvolfia serpentine? : 4 posts by 4 authors. Attachments (2).
Date/Time-22/8/2014 Location- Place, Altitude, GPS- north Gujarat Habitat- Garden/ Urban/ Wild/ Type- university garden Plant Habit- Tree/ Shrub/ Climber/ Herb- shrub Fruits Type/ Shape/ Size Seeds- red berries Other Information like Fragrance, Pollinator, Uses etc.- medicinal It is Rauvolfia tetraphylla. Rauvolfia tetraphylla May be Rauvolfia tetraphylla..
    Cochin.Pls Validate-Rauvolfia serpentina.021214RT.Dec-3 : 3 posts by 2 authors. Attachments (4)
Place-Cochin Rauvolfia tetraphylla , not R. serpentina.    ID request 070616SG : 2 posts by 2 authors. Attachments (3)
Requesting ID of this plant, about 2-3’ high with velvety leaves having milky latex. Photo taken on 07June16 at Solapur, Maharashtra. Rauwolfia tetraphylla
Fwd: Re: MS/06/2017/ 2 : Rauvolfia tetraphylla at Chennai Adyar Poonga : 2 posts by 1 author. Attachments (1)
Enclosed pl find the photograph of Rauvolfia tetraphylla and confirm the ID. Photograph taken during 2011.
I also think these are close to images of Rauvolfia tetraphylla L. as per comparative images at Rauvolfia
Taken at Aravalli biodiversity park, Delhi-NCR in November end
Rauvolfia tetraphylla
. Apocynaceae: Rauvolfia tetraphylla L.: 2 images.
Rauwolfia tetraphylla – efloraofindia | Google Groups . Apocynaceae: Rauvolfia tetraphylla: 3 high res. images.
Rauvolfia tetraphylla from Andhra University Botanical Garden, Visakhapatnam, Andhra Pradesh . Apocynaceae: Rauwolfia tetraphylla: 2 high res. images.
Collected from paderu forest area, near Lambhsainghi at a medicinal garden on 9 th October 2024 .
Names of Plants in India :: Rauvolfia tetraphylla L.: 1 image.
Rauvolfia tetraphylla L. raau-FO-feeah — named in honour of Leonhard Rauwolf [↗], German physician, botanist, and traveller … Dave’s Botanary
tet-ruh-FIL-uh — four-leaved … Dave’s Botanary commonly known as: American serpentwood, be still tree, devil pepper, wild snakeroot • Bengali: বড় চন্দ্রিকা bara chandrika, গন্ধনকুলী gandhanakuli • Hindi: बड़ा चंद्रिका bara-chandrika • Kannada: ದೊಡ್ಡ ಚಂದ್ರಿಕೆ dodda chandrike, ನಾಲ್ಕೆಲೆ ಸರ್ಪಗಂಧ naalkele sarpagandha • Malayalam: കാട്ടുമൽപ്പൊരി kattumalppori, പാമ്പുംകൊല്ലി paambumkolli • Odia: ପାତାଳ ଗରୁଡ଼ patala garuda • Tamil: பாம்பு களாச் செடி paambu kalaach chedi • Telugu: పాపటాకు papataku • Tulu: ಸರ್ಪಗಂಧೊ sarpagandho
known for / parts made use of: roots, leaves, bark & latex, fruits/berries … compiled from the web botanical names: Rauvolfia tetraphylla L. … homotypic synonyms: Rauvolfia canescens L. … heterotypic synonyms: Rauvolfia heterophylla Roem. & Schult. • Rauvolfia hirsuta Jacq. … and more at POWO, retrieved October 09, 2026 TAXONOMIC NOTE
Rauvolfia & Rauwolfia While strict botanical taxonomy dictates that Rauvolfia (with a “v”) is the only validly published genus name according to modern rules of nomenclature, Rauwolfia (with a “w”) remains deeply embedded in commercial trade and medical literature. This creates an interesting parallel usage where the taxonomically correct spelling is often overshadowed by its unauthorized, “corrected” counterpart. Because early pharmaceutical research and the landmark discovery of reserpine were heavily documented under the “w” variant, scientific and medical journals continue to favour it, allowing an orthographic error to command a larger following than the officially recognized botanical name. … compiled from the web.
Bibliography / etymology / notes
Links listed as references in the notes below, may not remain valid permanently. Portals / websites have a tendency to re-organize / revise their content, leading to change in URLs of pages in their site. Some sites may even close down at their own will. The bits about the languages of India mentioned below are merely some bare facts gathered from the internet; just enough to satisfy curiosity about “where” could the listed names be best prevalent in India. All English transliterated names to be taken sensu amplo.
~~~~~ ENGLISH ~~~~~
written and spoken widely, in most parts of India
American serpentwood, be still tree, devil pepper, wild snakeroot
~~~~~ BENGALI ~~~~~
written in: Bengali (বাংলা) … spoken in: West Bengal, Assam, Jharkhand, Tripura, Andaman & Nicobar Islands
বড় চন্দ্রিকা bara chandrika, গন্ধনকুলী gandhanakuli
The trail of Bengali names “Bara Chandrika” and “Gandhanakuli” reveals distinct etymological origins rooted in classical medical and scientific literature. When R. tetraphylla (synonym Rauvolfia canescens) was introduced and widely studied by researchers at institutions like the Calcutta Medical College and the School of Tropical Medicine, Calcutta in the mid-20th century as a reserpine substitute, researchers and local suppliers needed a clear distinction. Because tetraphylla grows into a noticeably larger, taller, much-branched woody shrub (up to 4 meters) compared to the small, herbaceous serpentina, it was officially designated as “Bara Chand” or “Bara Chandrika” in localized pharmacy and economic botany manuals. … compiled from the web.
~~~~~ HINDI ~~~~~
written in: Devanagari (हिन्दी) … spoken in: Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Haryana, Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Uttarakhand
बड़ा चंद्रिका bara-chandrika
~~~~~ KANNADA ~~~~~
written in: Kannada (ಕನ್ನಡ) … spoken in: Karnataka
ದೊಡ್ಡ ಚಂದ್ರಿಕೆ dodda chandrike
ನಾಲ್ಕೆಲೆ ಸರ್ಪಗಂಧ naalkele sarpagandha
~~~~~ MALAYALAM ~~~~~
written in: Malayalam (മലയാളം) … spoken in: Kerala, Lakshadweep
കാട്ടുമൽപ്പൊരി kattumalppori
പാമ്പുംകൊല്ലി paambumkolli
~~~~~ ODIA ~~~~~
written in: Odia (ଓଡ଼ିଆ) … spoken in: Odisha, Andaman & Nicobar Islands
ପାତାଳ ଗରୁଡ଼ patala garuda
~~~~~ TAMIL ~~~~~
written in: Tamil (தமிழ்) … spoken in: Tamil Nadu, Puducherry, Andaman & Nicobar Islands
பாம்பு களாச் செடி paambu kalaach chedi
~~~~~ TELUGU ~~~~~
written in: Telugu ( తెలుగు) … spoken in: Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Puducherry
పాపటాకు papataku
~~~~~ TULU ~~~~~
written in: Tigalari (Tulu) was used for writing Vedic texts in Sanskrit, Kannada (ತುಳು), Malayalam (തുളു) … spoken in: Karnataka, north Kerala
ಸರ್ಪಗಂಧೊ sarpagandho
~~~~~ KNOWN DISTRIBUTION in INDIA ~~~~~
cultivated in gardens from Uttar Pradesh to West Bengal southwards to Tamil Nadu and Kerala; it is naturalised in many localities and is a common weed in warm and moist habitats
~~~~~ Created on: 17:20 09-10-2026 ¦ Last updated: 11:55 10-10-2026 (DD-MM-YYYY) ~~~~~
Names compiled / updated at https://dineshvalke.blogspot.com/2026/10/rauvolfia-tetraphylla-l.html
കാട്ടമൽപ്പൊരി kaattamalpori is more correct. Malayalam name corrected …
commonly known as: American serpentwood, be still tree, devil pepper, wild snakeroot • Bengali: বড় চন্দ্রিকা bara chandrika, গন্ধনকুলী gandhanakuli • Hindi: बड़ा चंद्रिका bara-chandrika • Kannada: ದೊಡ್ಡ ಚಂದ್ರಿಕೆ dodda chandrike, ನಾಲ್ಕೆಲೆ ಸರ್ಪಗಂಧ naalkele sarpagandha • Malayalam: കാട്ടമൽപ്പൊരി kaattamalpori, പാമ്പുംകൊല്ലി paambumkolli • Odia: ପାତାଳ ଗରୁଡ଼ patala garuda • Tamil: பாம்பு களாச் செடி paambu kalaach chedi • Telugu: పాపటాకు papataku • Tulu: ಸರ್ಪಗಂಧೊ sarpagandho
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Rauvolfia tetraphylla
Updated on October 16, 2026