NepalAyurveds.com: Bastard Saffron

Kusum, कुसुम, कुसुम्भ, Lac Tree, Bastard Saffron, Schleichera oleosa

यसको ३०-४० फिट अग्लो पत्ता लामो किनार काटिएको चुच्चो, फूल केशरिया रङ गोलो, फल चारकोणको बीज सफेद शङ्खको आकृतिसमान हुन्छ । यो काँडा भएको र विनाकाँडाको गरी दुई प्रकारका हुन्छन् । फल विरेचक, मूत्रल, मांशपेशीलाई बल दिने, आमवात र पत्थरीनाशक हुन्छ । यसको बोक्रा र पात रुघा, पिनास, कष्टातर्वमा खाँदा लाभ गर्छ । यसको फूल सुकाएर राखेको धूलो १/१ चम्चा ३-५ पटक खाँदा रक्तअल्पता, मासिकधर्मको कष्ट, अर्बुद, अल्सर, अशुद्ध र बाक्लो रगतमा तत्काल लाभ पुऱ्याउँछ । मात्रा : यसको पुष्प शुष्क चूर्ण र बीज ३-५ ग्राम पानीसँग फूल र फलको काँढापानी १ / १ माना, अर्क : २०-२५ ग्राम, भस्म : १-२ ग्राम दिनमा २ पटक ।

परिचय

कुसुम (वैज्ञानिक नाम: Schleichera oleosa) नेपालको तराई र मध्य पहाडी क्षेत्रमा पाइने एक औषधीय तथा आर्थिक महत्त्वका रूख हो। यसलाई कुसुम, कुसुम्भ, लाक ट्री, बास्टर्ड स्याफ्रन आदि नामले चिनिन्छ। यो रूख नेपालका साथै भारत, बंगलादेश, श्रीलङ्का, म्यानमार, थाइल्याण्ड, इन्डोनेसिया लगायत दक्षिण एसियाली मुलुकहरूमा पाइन्छ। यसको बोक्रा, पात, फूल, फल र बीज विभिन्न रोगको उपचारमा प्रयोग गरिन्छ।

नेपाल र अन्य देशहरूमा उपलब्धता

कुसुमको रूख नेपालको तराई (चितवन, बारा, पर्सा, रौतहट, कपिलवस्तु, बाँके, बर्दिया) र मध्य पहाडी क्षेत्र (मकवानपुर, सिन्धुली, उदयपुर) मा प्राकृतिक रूपमा पाइन्छ। यसको खेती पनि गरिन्छ किनभने यसको बीजबाट तेल निकालिन्छ र यसको रूखमा लाक (लाख) कीरा पाल्ने गरिन्छ, जसले लाख उत्पादन गर्छ। भारत, बंगलादेश, श्रीलङ्का, म्यानमार लगायतका देशहरूमा पनि यो रूख पाइन्छ।

शारीरिक गुणहरू

रूख: कुसुमको रूख ३०–४० फिट अग्लो हुन्छ। यसको बोक्रा खैरो र खस्रो हुन्छ।
पात: पातहरू लामा, किनारा कटिएका, चुच्चो भएका हुन्छन्।
फूल: फूलहरू केशरिया (रातो-पहेँलो) रङ्गका हुन्छन् र गोलाकार हुन्छन्।
फल: फल चारकोणे आकारको हुन्छ र पाकेपछि रातो वा पहेँलो हुन्छ।
बीज: बीज सफेद र शंखको आकार जस्तो हुन्छ।

औषधीय गुणहरू

कुसुमको विभिन्न भागहरूमा निम्न औषधीय गुणहरू पाइन्छन्:

फल: विरेचक (पखाला लाग्ने), मूत्रल (पिसाब बढाउने), मांसपेशी बलवर्धक, आमवात (जोड्ने दुखाइ), पत्थरी नाशक।
बोक्रा र पात: रुघाखोकी, पिनास (नाकबाट पानी बग्ने), कफ, कष्टश्वासमा उपयोगी।
फूलको धूलो: रक्तअल्पता (एनिमिया), मासिकधर्मको कष्ट, अर्बुद (ट्युमर), अल्सर, अशुद्ध र बाक्लो रगतमा लाभदायक।

लाभहरू

१. पाचनतन्त्र: फलले पेट सफा गर्छ र कब्जियत हटाउँछ।
२. मूत्र समस्या: मूत्रमार्गको संक्रमण र पत्थरी नाश गर्छ।
३. श्वासप्रश्वास: बोक्रा र पातले श्वासप्रश्वास सम्बन्धी रोग (कफ, अस्थमा) ठीक गर्छ।
४. महिला स्वास्थ्य: फूलले महिलाहरूको अनियमित मासिकधर्म र एनिमिया ठीक गर्छ।
५. चर्मरोग: बीजको तेलले छालाको खटिरा, खुजली ठीक गर्छ।

प्रयोग विधि

फूलको धूलो: सुकेको फूललाई पिँधेर १ चम्चा दिनमा ३–५ पटक पानीसँग सेवन गर्ने।
फलको काढा: फलको गुदी वा बीज ३–५ ग्राम पानीमा उमालेर पिउने।
बोक्राको काढा: बोक्रा उमालेर २०–२५ ग्राम काढा दिनमा २ पटक पिउने।
भस्म: बीजको भस्म १–२ ग्राम दूध वा मौसमी रससँग मिसाएर खाने।

संकलन र संरक्षण

संकलन: फूल वसन्त ऋतुमा, फल गर्मीमा, बोक्रा वर्षायाममा संकलन गर्नुपर्छ।
संरक्षण: फूल र फलहरू सुकाएर एयरटाइट कन्टेनरमा राख्नुपर्छ। बोक्रा र पात पनि सुकाएर भण्डारण गर्न सकिन्छ।

निष्कर्ष

कुसुम एक बहुउपयोगी रूख हो जसको औषधीय, आर्थिक र पर्यावरणीय महत्त्व छ। यसले नेपालको पारम्परिक चिकित्सामा ठूलो भूमिका खेलेको छ। यसको फूल, फल, बीज, बोक्रा, पात सबै स्वास्थ्यका लागि उपयोगी छन्। यसको वैज्ञानिक प्रयोग र संरक्षणले नेपालको आयुर्वेदिक चिकित्सालाई अझ बलियो बनाउन सक्छ।

Introduction

Kusum — also called कुसुम or कुसुम्भ in Nepali, Lac Tree, Bastard Saffron, or Schleichera oleosa — is a tall, beautiful tree that grows up to 30–40 feet (about 9–12 meters). It belongs to the Sapindaceae family. Native to South Asia, it's easy to spot in Nepal’s forests and other nearby countries. In Ayurvedic tradition, it’s praised for its powerful healing abilities and is used a lot in folk medicine.

📍 Availability in Nepal and Other Countries

Nepal: Kusum is commonly found across the lower hills and mid-hills. Its fruits, seeds, leaves, and bark are part of local herbal practices.
India: Widespread across states like Odisha, West Bengal, Madhya Pradesh, and the Deccan plateau
Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Southeast Asia (Thailand, Java), and parts of Southeast Asia: Also naturally occur and are used in herbal medicine .

It’s a hardy tree that grows in dry to moist forests, at altitudes from sea level up to about 1,200 m. In Nepal, you’ll find it in dry hill forests.

🔍 Physical Properties

Here’s what makes Kusum unique:

Height & Appearance: A single-trunk tree growing between 9–12 meters tall, with pinnate leaves composed of 2–4 leaflets
Leaves: Long-pinnate and slightly serrated.
Flowers: Small, yellow, clustered in short bunches
Fruits: Ovoid, 2.5–3 cm long; taper to a point, often with 1–3 seed chambers; seeds enclosed in a juicy aril
Seeds: About 1.5 cm long; brown with high oil (25–38%) and 16–20% protein
Bark & Wood: Thick, with astringent properties. The wood is hard and durable, used traditionally in tools, firewood, and charcoal

💊 Medicinal Properties

Kusum is loaded with healing goodness. Here are science-backed properties:

Anti-inflammatory & Pain Relief: Alcoholic extracts from the bark reduce inflammation in rat and mice models thanks to compounds like lupeol, betulin & betulinic acid
Analgesic: Same extracts work to relieve both immediate (neurogenic) and later (inflammatory) pain in experiments
Antimicrobial & Antioxidant: Bark and seed extracts fight microbes and soak up harmful free radicals
Anticancer: Seed extracts slowed breast cancer cell growth and affected gene activity (BRCA1, p16)
Gastrointestinal Aid:

Used for dysentery, diarrhea relief, and ulcer care
Bark used for menorrhea (heavy periods) and fever

Skin & Hair Benefits: Kusum oil helps with acne, itching, alopecia (hair loss), burns; encourages hair growth
Used in Cattle: Seed powder cleans wounds and removes maggots; bark paste applies to skin issues on livestock
Other Effects: Some use it as an appetizer and to boost muscle strength; it's also used for stones and muscles in traditional systems.

🌟 Advantages

Using Kusum brings multiple benefits:

Natural anti-inflammatory relief for arthritis, oedema, joint/muscle pains.
Wide healing coverage: targets ailments like dysentery, skin issues, ulcers, ulcers in animals.
Hair and skin wellness: nourishes scalp and skin, fights infections and dryness.
Cancer research promise: early lab studies show potential against breast cancer cells.
Multipurpose: used in both humans and animals – seeds work as wound-healing agents.
Sustainable resource: bark and seed oil can be harvested without killing the tree; wood is useful too.

⚙️ Uses

Here’s a helpful table to understand which part of Kusum does what:

Part	Use Cases
Flowers (dried powder)	1 tsp 3–5 times daily helps treat anemia, menstrual cramps, tumors, ulcers, heavy/bad blood
Seeds/Seed powder	3–5 g daily with water—used in teas or decoctions. Applied externally on livestock wounds to remove maggots .
Seed oil (Kusum oil)	2.5–5 ml: taken internally (with milk) for scrotal swelling; externally for rheumatism, burns, itching, acne; massaged on scalp for hair growth; used in earache after warming with garlic .
Bark	Bark paste used for menorrhea; fever; gland inflammation; skin ulcers; lower back pain (lepa); dysentery; cattle skin conditions .
Leaves	Fodder for animals; leaf decoctions/drinking juice (~10–15 ml) treat feverish cold, lower back pain .
Fruit pulp	Eaten ripe or used in soups; acts as an appetizer and balances digestion .

🍽 Using Method

Here’s a clear guide for how people use Kusum parts:

Flower powder: Dry, grind, take 1 tsp (about 2–3 g) 3–5 times per day with water or honey.
Seed powder: Dry seeds, grind to 3–5 g dose; can be taken directly or mixed in decoction.
Seed decoction: Soak seeds in water, boil, and drink 50–100 ml daily.
Kusum oil:

Internal: 2.5–5 ml with warm milk at bedtime.
External: Warm slightly for massage (rheumatism, burns, itching); scalp application for hair growth; carring ear pain remedy made with heated garlic.

Bark decoction/paste:

Decoction: Boil bark and drink 50–100 ml daily (fever, headache).
Paste (lepa): Powder mixed with water or other herb powders, applied to impacted skin areas or lower back pain.

Leaf juice: Fresh leaves crushed, juice (~10–15 ml) taken for colds or pain.
Always follow, as per ayurvedic tradition: flower/seed decoction ratio 1:1; herbal extract doc ~20–25 g; ash form 1–2 g twice daily

🌾 Harvesting & Preservation

When to Harvest:

Fruits & seed collection: During monsoon fruiting (June–September).
Flowers: Gather in bloom season, then dry.
Bark & leaves: Collected any time, best in dry season.

How to Harvest:

Gently climb for fruit bunches or use pole-picks.
Remove fruit pulp by rubbing in water; extract seeds.
Dry flowers/bark in shade (avoid sunlight).
Grind dried parts into powder.
Press or extract seed oil in clean, dry labs.

Preserving:

Dried powder: Store in sealed, dark glass jars away from moisture and sunlight.
Oil: Filter, settle, remove solids, store in airtight, glass/food‑grade containers; keep cool. Contains trace cyanogenic compounds—ensure proper refining
Decoction: Best used fresh; can refrigerate ~2 days.
Ash (Bhasma): Calcined in fire, powdered, stored airtight.

✅ Conclusion

Kusum (Schleichera oleosa) is a majestic tree with a treasure trove of healing and practical uses:

Medicinal powerhouses: anti‑inflammatory, analgesic, antimicrobial, antioxidant, hair & skin treatments, gastrointestinal support, cancer research potential.
All parts usable: flowers, seeds, oil, bark, leaves, fruit—each with its special role.
Across species: humans and animals benefit.
Agriculturally helpful: supports cattle (fodder, wound healing); hosts lac insects; hard wood provides tools/firewood.
Well‑known culturally: embedded in Ayurveda and tribal medicine.
Approach wisely: follow safe dosages, refine oil to remove toxins, and consult experts before medicinal use.

Kusum is a fine example of a sustainable medicinal tree: it grows wild, helps people's health, and benefits animals and communities with just careful harvesting and knowledge. It’s a living legacy rooted in science and tradition alike.

Reference

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