Elephant apple (Dillenia indica)

Dillenia indica, the elephant apple, is an evergreen tree with huge, ribbed leaves, large white flowers and big, round, green fruit made of thick, fleshy sepals wrapped around a sour pulp. In Assam (ou tenga) and Bengal (chalta) the fruit is cooked into sour dals, chutneys and pickles. Wild elephants love it, and they disperse its seeds.

Botanical name: Dillenia indica L.
Family: Dilleniaceae
Tamil: Uva
Hindi: Chalta
Parts used: Ripe fruit pulp, Persistent calyx
Habit: Elephant apple; wood-apple is Limonia
Last updated: 2026-10-26

How to recognise Elephant apple

It is a medium-sized evergreen tree with a dense crown of large, glossy, oblong leaves with many straight, parallel side veins and toothed edges.

Flowers are large, white and fragrant, about fifteen centimetres across, with a central mass of yellow stamens.

The fruit is a round, hard, green ball made of five thick, overlapping sepals around a gelatinous, sour core.

Karmal, Dillenia pentagyna, is deciduous, with smaller yellow flowers in clusters and small fruit.

Fruits ripen in the cool season and fall heavily, often lying in heaps beneath the tree.

Traditional use of Elephant apple

Kitchen

The sour sepals are cooked with fish and dal, made into chutney and pickles, and used to make jams in Assam, Bengal and the north-east.

North-east and Bengal food practice

Modern notes on Elephant apple

Nutrition studies describe the fruit as rich in fibre and organic acids.

It is planted as an ornamental for its leaves and flowers.

Elephant apple safety

Eat the fruit cooked, as local cooks do. It is very sour raw.

Ecology and sourcing

It grows in moist evergreen forests and along streams from India through Southeast Asia.

Elephants, monkeys and deer eat the fallen fruit, and elephants are among its main seed dispersers.

Its large flowers are visited by bees and beetles.

It is often planted in gardens and along roads in the north-east for its handsome foliage.

Related plants

Also in Dilleniaceae

Questions about Elephant apple

Is Elephant apple wood-apple?

No. Wood-apple is Limonia acidissima.

Why elephant apple?

Elephants eat the fruit and spread the seeds.

How is Elephant apple eaten?

Cooked in dal, curries, chutneys and pickles.

What is the Assamese name?

Ou tenga.

Sources

Educational page about a plant. It is not medical advice, not a diagnosis, and not an offer to sell. Traditional use is historical. If you need care, ask a licensed clinician. Questions: hello@meevamed.com.