27 April 2022

Withania somnifera

I am participating in the April AtoZ Blogging challenge and my theme is Plants featured on Indian Stamps. This is my eight attempt at the AtoZ and the focus is on plants. 

My theme is inspired by an online talk by Daniel L Nikrent of Cornell University, USA held by Maharashtra Vriksha Samvardhini about Parasitic Flowering Plants featured on Stamps

I am not a stamp collector nor a fan of stamps. Hence almost all my posts are purely based on research on the internet. I have tried to cross check the info before posting here. Please do share correct info and links to the same in case of discrepancy. 

India Post has a very strong network reaching deep deep into the interiors of the country and I depended on it for news from home when we were posted in far away places.  In this age of smartphones, Internet, how many of us really write letters - snail mail as they are now called? Despite this , I find that new stamps are being issued and we have stamps on diverse topics including Armed Forces, Films, Personalities, Wildlife, Handlooms, Handicrafts and so on.. It is amazing!

Withania somnifera will be on my blog for the second time.. both as part of the AtoZ! :-) 

And here is its post from 2016.

Withania somnifera or Ashwagandha belongs to the Solanceae family and is of huge medicinal importance. It is a native perennial herb with branches growing radially on the main stem. Its green bell shaped flowers turn into orange fruit covered with a papery sepals. In Pune, I have seen it growing wild by the roadside. 

India Post issued a commemorative stamp in 2003 of denomination 5 INR.

Post of India, GODL-India <https://data.gov.in/sites/default/files/Gazette_Notification_OGDL.pdf>, via Wikimedia Commons

Wheat is an important component of our diet. To commemorate the Wheat Revolution, India Post released a stamp depicting wheat stalks and its increased production graph from 1951-1968. It is of denomination 20nP. 

India Post, Government of India (GODL-India <https://data.gov.in/sites/default/files/Gazette_Notification_OGDL.pdf> or GODL-India <https://data.gov.in/sites/default/files/Gazette_Notification_OGDL.pdf>), via Wikimedia Commons

The India Postage Stamps website  has a complete catalogue of stamps. Please click the link to see many many wonderful stamps.

Colnect is a comprehensive portal for Stamp collectors. It gives detailed information about every listed stamp.  Click here for detailed info about Stamps - what is a stamp, types, formats, water marks, perforations and much more.  

We meet tomorrow for yet another beautiful plant and its stamp!

You can catch up with my previous posts here

Till then, Take Care and Stay Happy!  


12 comments:

Afshan Shaik said...

Isn't aswagandha predominantly used in ayurveda medicine? Good day :)

Archana said...

@Afshan Yes. It has huge medicinal value. Thanks for stopping by! :-)

Jayashree Srivatsan said...

I did not know the scientific name but Aswagandha seems familiar ... is it added to tea ?

Anonymous said...

Solanaceae is such a strong family

Beth
https://bethlapinsatozblog.wordpress.com/

moondustwriter said...

I see Ashwagandha in health articles often. The wheat stamp is lovely


War Torn

Nilanjana Bose said...

India Posts has been my lifesaver, as I wrote letters to my parents throughout the time I was abroad and received magazine subscriptions even as late as 2013. Cool theme!

Archana said...

@Jayashree I am not sure if its added to Tea. But I will definitely look it up and add to my Reflections post! :-) Thanks for this food for thought!

Archana said...

@Beth Yes indeed. Many foods belong to this family like Potato, Brinjal, Pepper. Tobacco and Belladonna also are Solanaceae members. Many ornamentals as well. Thanks for this wonderful observation.

Archana said...

@moondustwriter Thank you!

Archana said...

@Nilanjana Thank you so much! The advent of Internet has reduced the importance of regular snail mail . It is so special to read something on paper..

Hannelore Adler (SteampunkCowCorn) said...

I never imagined how Ashgawandha looked like! my husband and I use it regularly as an adaptogenic, it has been a better way to rest better and of course, to stop taking pain pills for fibromyalgia.
You mentioned on your reflection post that ashgawandha can be taken as a tea, but the husband said that he saw somewhere that the root loses its properties when heated. I wonder if that´s the case because we can find it only as a powder instead of the fresh root.

Archana said...

@Absenta what your husband said about the root may be true. I have not personally consumed Ashwagandha Tea. The info I found is via a website. But its great to know someone who has used Ashwagandha for its medicinal properties. Thanks for sharing this vital info! And for stopping by!! :-) :-)