''Vitex trifolia'', the simpleleaf chastetree, is a large coastal shrub or small

tree In botany, a tree is a perennial plant with an elongated stem, or trunk, usually supporting branches and leaves. In some usages, the definition of a tree may be narrower, including only woody plants with secondary growth, plants that are ...

Description

''Vitex trifolia'' is a large coastal shrub or small tree, less than 5 m in height with the stems covered by soft hairs (tomentose). The leaves are oppositely arranged along the stems and are usually compound, composed of three linear leaflets which range between 1 and 12 cm in length. The upper surfaces of the leaves are green and the lower surfaces are grayish green. The flowers are born in

panicles A panicle is a much-branched inflorescence. (softcover ). Some authors distinguish it from a compound spike inflorescence, by requiring that the flowers (and fruit) be pedicellate (having a single stem per flower). The branches of a panicle are o ...

or clusters up to 18 cm in length. Individual flowers have purple to violet, two-lipped corollas that are about 5 mm long. The stamens are in two pairs and the ovary is superior, or develops above the corolla. The fleshy fruits are about 6 mm in diameter and contain four small, black seeds.

Distribution

''Vitex trifolia'' is naturally found along coastlines from tropical East

Africa Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent, after Asia in both cases. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of Earth's total surface area ...

as far east as French Polynesia.

Traditional medicine

The leaves are used to treat female ailments in the

Cook Islands ) , image_map = Cook Islands on the globe (small islands magnified) (Polynesia centered).svg , capital = Avarua , coordinates = , largest_city = Avarua , official_languages = , lan ...

, and used to relieve

fever Fever, also referred to as pyrexia, is defined as having a temperature above the normal range due to an increase in the body's temperature set point. There is not a single agreed-upon upper limit for normal temperature with sources using val ...

Samoa Samoa, officially the Independent State of Samoa; sm, Sāmoa, and until 1997 known as Western Samoa, is a Polynesian island country consisting of two main islands ( Savai'i and Upolu); two smaller, inhabited islands ( Manono and Apolima); ...

. Additionally in Samoa, the dried leaves are burned to deter

mosquito Mosquitoes (or mosquitos) are members of a group of almost 3,600 species of small flies within the family Culicidae (from the Latin ''culex'' meaning " gnat"). The word "mosquito" (formed by ''mosca'' and diminutive ''-ito'') is Spanish for "li ...

References

Details on Vitex trifolia
{{Taxonbar, from=Q29533 trifolia Flora of Africa Medicinal plants Plants described in 1753 Taxa named by Carl Linnaeus ml:വെള്ളനൊച്ചി