Botanical identity
Which species is this classical drug name? 309 herb pages carried no botanical name. Each was identified, then handed to an independent verifier instructed to refute the identification against authoritative botanical sources. Rejection was the default wherever identity was contested across sources: a wrong binomial is worse than a blank field, because it renders as fact and pulls in literature about a different plant.
How it was checked
- Every herb page with no botanical name was collected (309 pages).
- An identifying agent proposed a binomial with its basis and a contested flag.
- An independent verifier was instructed to refute the identification against authoritative botanical sources, defaulting to reject.
- Rejection was the correct outcome wherever sources disagree. A wrong binomial is worse than a blank field: it renders as fact and pulls in literature about a different plant.
What came out
| Pages with no botanical name | 309 |
|---|---|
| Identifications examined | 256 |
| Accepted | 108 |
| Rejected | 148 |
| Not a plant (correctly has no binomial) | 76 |
| Plants accepted | 108 |
| Plants rejected | 72 |
| Flagged as contested at identification | 81 |
| Contested and rejected | 70 |
| Contested but resolvable on the evidence | 11 |
By what the entry turned out to be
Most rejections are not mistakes. A bhasma, a purified salt, an isolated compound or an animal-derived drug has no botanical binomial, and recording that is the correct outcome rather than a gap.
| Category | Accepted | Rejected |
|---|---|---|
| plant | 108 | 72 |
| compound | 0 | 33 |
| mineral | 0 | 21 |
| animal | 0 | 11 |
| uncertain | 0 | 8 |
| salt | 0 | 3 |
Worked rejections
The rate says less than the reasoning does. These are real cases from this run.
gavedhuka— proposed Coix lacryma-jobi- Ayurvedic nighantu and modern dravyaguna sources (e.g. ayushvedah drug database, wisdomlib nighantu entries, published pharmacology papers on 'Gavedhuka (Coix lacryma-jobi L.)') consistently identify Gavedhuka as Job's tears, Coix lacryma-jobi L. (Poaceae), accepted in POWO; 'Coix lacryma L.' cited alongside is a synonym. Marked medium rather than high because I did not confirm an Ayurvedic Pharma
granthiparni— proposed Leonotis nepetifolia- The Ayurvedic Pharmacopoeia of India Part 1 Vol 3 gives the source of Granthiparni as the root of Leonotis nepetifolia (L.) R.Br. (Lamiaceae), accepted in POWO. However, published source-identification reviews note Bapalal Vaidya and Thakur Balwant Singh treated the identity as controversial, and Granthiparni is also identified in parts of India with Artemisia indica / Artemisia vulgaris. Binomial
bala-mool— proposed Sida cordifolia- 'Bala mula' = root of Bala, whose official pharmacopoeial source is Sida cordifolia L. (Malvaceae), the accepted POWO name. Flagged contested because DNA-barcoding work on the South Indian raw-drug trade (J. Ethnopharmacol./Biochem. Syst. Ecol. studies) shows Kerala practice accepts Sida rhombifolia var. retusa as Bala, and S. acuta / S. rhombifolia are common market substitutes.
bandhuka— proposed Pentapetes phoenicea- Bandhuka / Bandhujiva is identified with Pentapetes phoenicea L. (Malvaceae, Hindi dopahariya, the midday flower) in Ayurvedic drug databases (ayushvedah), Sanskrit-botanical concordances (wisdomlib) and pharmacognostic work on P. phoenicea leaves. Some regional and ornamental usage attaches 'Bandhuka' to Ixora coccinea, hence medium rather than high, but Pentapetes is the dominant Ayurvedic ident
bhumyamalaki— proposed Phyllanthus amarus- Bhumyamalaki (Tamalaki) is the whole plant of Phyllanthus amarus Schumach. & Thonn. (Phyllanthaceae) in Indian pharmacognostic and pharmacopoeial work (e.g. IJAPR screening of Bhumyamalaki as P. amarus). Contested because much popular and clinical literature labels it Phyllanthus niruri L., while Indian floristic work assigns most northern Indian material to Phyllanthus fraternus G.L.Webster; all
bhunimba— proposed Andrographis paniculata- Modern Ayurvedic usage equates Bhunimba with Kalamegha, Andrographis paniculata (Burm.f.) Nees (Acanthaceae) (ayushvedah drug entry; standard Dravyaguna sources). Genuinely contested: Bhunimba is also used as a synonym of Kiratatikta, Swertia chirayita (Roxb.) H.Karst. (Gentianaceae), for which A. paniculata is the common market substitute, and Rajanighantu applies Bhunimba to Bhumikadamba as well
Caveat
The identify stage lost part of one batch to a network failure and was resumed. 16 accepted entries therefore have a verifier record but no retained identify record; they are marked identifyRecordLost.