Introduction:

Sadabahar (Catharanthus Roseus) is a flowering plant found commonly in the garden of almost all the plant lovers. People of different parts of world call it by so many names as Sadabahar, Bright eyes, Cape periwinkle, Graveyard plant, Madagascar periwinkle, Old maid, Pink periwinkle, Rose periwinkle etc. It is a perennial species of flowering plant, native to Madagascar but grown all over world as an ornamental and medicinal plant. As its name ‘Sadabahar’ it is an evergreen herbaceous plant bearing flowers in all the seasons, whether it is hot summer, wet rains, chill winter or colorful spring. Pink and white flowers of the plant decorate the garden throughout the year and deep green dense leaves spread greenery in the garden even during autumn. Most of the old age people love this plant due to its medicinal values, its leaves and flowers are good medicine for diabetes.

Description:

Sadabahar (Catharanthus Roseus) is an evergreen subshrub or herbaceous plant growing 80cm. to 90cm. tall, the leaves are oval, glossy green, arranged in opposite pairs. The flowers are white with a yellow or red center as well as dark pink with darker red center. Apart from its ornamental values it is well known and widely cultivated for its medicinal uses. Ayurvedic, yunani and Siddha practitioners prescribe its leaves and flowers to diabetic people. It is a source of the drugs vincristine and vinblastine, used to treat cancer.

Cultivation:

Sadabahar is cultivated mainly as decorative plant; it does not require too much water and can survive in dry climatic conditions and also in nutritionally deficient conditions. It can be cultivated easily in very cold areas and also in hot areas. Due to its long flowering period it is economically profitable for cultivators. Full sun and well drained soil are preferred for high yielding. Most of the cultivators select pink (grape cooler) and white (albus) varieties.

Uses:

Indian traditional medicine system Ayurveda has been using the leaves, flowers, the extracts of roots and shoots of the plant as herbal medicines for centuries. Yunani, Siddha and Chinese traditional medicine system also use the extracts of the plant for treating numerous diseases including diabetes, malaria and lymphoma. Vinca alkaloids including vinblastine and vincristine were isolated from Sadabahar plant for anti-diabetic drugs. Researches done on the above mentioned compounds extracted from the roots and shoots of the plant lead to chemotherapeutic properties. Chemotherapy medications vinblastine and vincristine are being used to treat several types of cancers. Vinblastine and vincristine extracted from the plant are being used to synthesize many desired alkaloids to cure lung cancer and other diseases requiring chemotherapy.

Drawback:

The stem and roots of Sadabahar plant are toxic if consumed orally. It may be dangerous for children if they chew the stem or root of the plant. Mild stomach cramps, vomiting, cardiac complications etc. may be caused by the intake of the poisonous parts of the plant.

Conclusion:

Sadabahar (Catharanthus Roseus) is a beautiful ornamental plant as well as an useful medicinal plant. It is being attracted by a huge population due to its beautiful flowers and also liked by a big population due to its medicinal values. Ancient medical systems to modern medical system studied the chemical composition of the plant and discovered the medicinal values of the plant.