gambhari :
Geographical distribution:
In India, Gmelina arborea occurs extensively from the Ravi eastwards in the sub-Himalayan tracts, common throughout Assam and adjoining areas of northern West Bengal, also in southern Bihar and Odisha, sporadically found in western and southern India and planted elsewhere on a large scale. Gamhar most commonly occurs in West Bengal forests in mixed forests.
ECOLOGICAL ASPECT:
-Estimated to range from Tropical Very Dry to Wet through Subtropical Very Dry to Wet Forest Life Zones, gmelina is reported or estimated to tolerate annual precipitation of 7 to 45 dm (NAS, 1980a), annual temperature of 20 to 26°C, and pH of 6 to 8. It can tolerate a 6–7-month dry season. Grows on many soils, acidic laterites to calcareous loams, doing poorly on thin or poor soils with hardpan, dry sands, or heavily leached acidic soils, well-drained basic alluviums.
Plant conservation:
it is suggested that from one tree partial debarking should be done by removing bark in patches of 15cm X 15cm with a distance of 60 cm. For getting roots, from the young plant it is desirable that the root should have good thick bark so as to get maximum active principle. Since, harvesting of roots and bark would be destructive, it is recommended to collect the bark from the clear felled crop as secondary product to avoid destruction of the plants growing in nature. Yellowish green fruits are collected from April-June from the ground duly rejecting the green and black ones. Fruits are heaped under or buried in a pit for 4-5 days and then washed to remove the pulp
