English: Indian beec; Pongame oiltree.
Synonym: Millettia pinnata.
Genus: 1 species
Region: eastern and tropical Asia, to north and north-eastern Australia, Pacific islands, India to Japan, Thailand, Malesia, Cambodia; propagated to Africa, Caribbean Islands, the United States.
Habitat: tropical and temperate; humid and subtropical environments; from sea level to 1,360 m; slightly tolerant to frost; on sandy and rocky soils, oolitic limestone, most soil types, even with roots in salt water; suited to intense heat and sunlight; drought tolerant; also a freshwater flooded forest species, can survive total submergence in water for few months continuously.
Content: oil (27-39%), protein (17-37%), starch (6-7%), fiber (5-7%), ash content (2-3%); oleic acid; oil has a high content of triglycerides, with disagreeable taste and odor, due to bitter flavonoid constituents, karanjin, pongamol, tannin, karanjachromene.
Use: landscaping, windbreak, for shade, soil erosio, binding sand dunes, ornamental; flowers as compost; bark to make twine or rope, black gum; medicinal; wood for firewood, posts, tool handles; oil of seeds as lamp oil, soap, lubricant, in diesel generators; as food for cattle, sheep and poultry.
BotanyTree; 15 to 25 m tall; large canopy, spreading wide; deciduous for short periods.
Root: with nodules, determinate, formed bacterium Bradyrhizobium.
Stem: straight or crooked; 50 to 80 cm in diameter; bark grey-brown, smooth or vertically fissured; wood is white; branches are glabrous with pale stipulate scars.
Leaves: imparipinnate; alternate; short-stalked; rounded, or cuneate at the base, ovate or oblong along the length, obtuse-acuminate at the apex; not toothed on the edges; soft, shiny burgundy when young, and mature to a glossy, deep green when mature; prominent veins underneath.
Inflorescence: small clusters; raceme-like; 2 to 4 flowers.
Flowers: white, purple, and pink; showy, fragrant; flowering throughout the year; starts after 3–4 years.
Fruits: indehiscent pods; brown; mature in 10 to 11 months; thick-walled, smooth; somewhat flattened, and elliptical; slightly curved with a short, curved point; contain 1 to 2 beans.
Seeds: bean-like; brownish-red; ± 2 cm long; with a brittle, oily coat; unpalatable in natural form to herbivores.
Chromosome number: diploid; 22.
TaxonomyPongamia pinnata was first described as Cytisus pinnatus. In 1898 Jean Baptiste Louis Pierre reclassified it as
Pongamia pinnata. In 1984 Pongamia was included into Millettia, as they were easily confused. Subsequent studies revealed that Millettia pinnata was paraphyletic within Millettia, and the species was reclassified as
Pongamia pinnata.