Jungak (Ophiorrhiza mungos)

Jungak (Ophiorrhiza mungos) is a species of plant in the Rubiaceae, herbaceous, erect, about 50 cm high, cylindrical stem, single or branched, green, hairy, fibrous roots, grows on the shady forest floor and usually forms colonies.

O. mungos has oval or oblong or elongated leaves, flat margins, blunt or pointed tips, green, wavy surface, a major central vein and many pinnate minor veins. Leaves have stalks and sit opposite.



The inflorescence is in a radial panicle at the upper end of the stem, stalked and branched, cylindrical, erect and green. The crown is trumpet-shaped and white.

TAXON

Kingdom: Plantae
Phylum: Tracheophyta
Subphylum: Angiospermae
Class: Magnoliopsida
Order: Gentianales
Family: Rubiaceae
Subfamily: Rubioideae
Tribe: Ophiorrhizeae
Genus: Ophiorrhiza L. in Sp. Pl.: 150 (1753)
Species: Ophiorrhiza mungos L. in Sp. Pl.: 150 (1753)

HETEROTYPIC SYNONYMS

Ophiorrhiza ostindica Christm. in Vollst. Pflanzensyst. 5: 503 (1779)

PUBLICATIONS

Choudhary, R.K., Srivastava, R.C., Das, A.K. & Lee, J. (2012). Floristic diversity assessment and vegetation analysis of Upper Siang district of eastern Himalaya in North East India. Korean Journal of Plant Taxonomy 42: 222-246.

Deb, D.B. & Gangopadhyay, M. (2025). Flora of India 14: 1-607. Botanical Survey of India.

Govaerts, R. (2003). World Checklist of Selected Plant Families Database in ACCESS: 1-216203. The Board of Trustees of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew.

Karthigeyan, K., Pandey, R.P. & Mao, A.A. (eds.) (2023). Flora of Andaman and Nicobar Islands 2: 1-689. Botanical Survey of India. Ministry of environment, forest and climate change.

Mao, A.A. & Dash, S.S. (2020). Flowering Plants of India an Annotated Checklist (Dicotyledons) 1: 1-970. Botanical Survey of India.

Pasha, M.K. & Uddin, S.B. (2013). Dictionary of plant names of Bangladesh, Vasc. Pl.: 1-434. Janokalyan Prokashani, Chittagong, Bangladesh.

Wu, Z., Raven, P.H. & Hong, D. (eds.) (2011). Flora of China 19: 1-884. Missouri Botanical Garden Press, St. Louis.

VERNACULAR NAME

English: Jungak
Indonesia: Jungak
Java: Jungak

Aryo Bandoro
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