J is for Justicia adhatoda

Welcome! 
I am writing about herbs in the 2016 April AtoZ blogging challenge. Most of the herbs written in this series are those I have seen or used. My herb for the alphabet J is said to be an excellent remedy for cough and asthama. Having said that, I have not myself used this as a medicine.

Some of you may have guessed, J is for Justicia adhatoda which is commonly called Adulsa and it  belongs to the Acanthaceae family. Its flowers are white and resemble the open mouth of a lion! Well, that may sound like an exaggeration but its the closest I can get to  describe flower shape in general terms. The petals have pink lines on them which are said to be pathways to guide insects into the flower - this helps in pollination. All plants have their own special mechanisms to attract their respective pollinators. The leaves are lanceolate, opposite and slightly hairy. While the plant is of huge medicinal importance to humans, it is said that goats and other herbivores do not like this foliage as food... The herb grows to be fairly tall and is a native species. 

Here are some of my amateur images...

Image Source Wikipedia (By ShineB - Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0)

That's it for today.
Happy blogging and take care!
:)

PS: Some authorities have classified Adulsa as a herb and some has a shrub. My blog has benefitted from these differences!