Henna

Conservation status:

Introduced

Description:

Growth form: Tree. Flowering. Sep–Feb. Status: Introduced. Also recorded: E Saudi Arabia, UAE. Habitat & distribution: Planted in urban areas in the Gulf, but distribution in Qatar uncertain. Uses: Widely used in the Middle East as a dye for painting hands and feet and worldwide for colouring hair and beards. The leaves are used for fevers, as a local anaesthetic and anti-inflammatory and for treating mouth ulcers (Ghazanfar). Jongbloed et al. remark that it is one of the traditional ‘plants of paradise’ which should not be cut for fuel.