Scientific name – Dalbergia sissoo
Family – Fabaceae
Dalbergia sissoo, known commonly as North Indian rosewood or shisham, is a fastgrowing, hardy, deciduous rosewood tree native to the Indian subcontinent and southern Iran. D. sissoo is a large, crooked tree with long, leathery leaves and whitish or pink flowers.
Dalbergia sissoo is a medium to large deciduous tree with a light crown, which
reproduces by seeds and suckers. It can grow up to 25 m (82 ft) in height and 2 to 3 m
(6 ft 7 in to 9 ft 10 in) in diameter, but is usually smaller. Trunks are often crooked when
grown in the open. Leaves are leathery, alternate, pinnately compound, and about 15
cm (5.9 in) long. Flowers are whitish to pink, fragrant, nearly sessile, up to 1.5 cm (0.59
in) long, and in dense clusters 5 to 10 cm (2.0 to 3.9 in) in length. Pods are oblong, flat,
thin, strap-like, 4 to 8 cm (1.6 to 3.1 in) long, 1 cm (0.39 in) wide, and light brown. They
contain one to five flat, bean-shaped seeds, 8 to 10 mm (0.31 to 0.39 in) long.
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