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Neem
नीम
A common roadside shade tree: a dense dark-green crown, leaves made of many narrow toothed leaflets, and sprays of small white flowers that smell of honey in spring.
👀 How to recognise it
Each leaf is a row of curved, sharply toothed leaflets, slightly uneven at the base. Crush one and it smells bitter and green. In early summer the tree hangs with small olive-like yellow fruit.
Where to see it
Govardhan
The circuit is a long walk on open road, and the neem line along it is what makes it possible outside the cold months. Twigs cut from these trees are still sold as chewing sticks at the rest points.
Govardhan Hill & Parikrama Marg · Chandra Sarovar & Surdas Kuti, Parasoli
Mathura
Neem twigs are still the everyday toothbrush here, sold in bundles at the morning markets around the ghats, and the leaves go into stored grain and cloth to keep insects out. Neem is also what keeps the Mathura streets walkable through May and June.
Vishram Ghat · Raman Reti, Gokul
Vrindavan
Neem twigs are still the everyday toothbrush in Braj towns, sold in bundles in the morning markets, and the leaves go into stored grain and cloth to keep insects out. The tree is also the reason the roadside stays walkable in May.
Vrindavan Parikrama Marg · Bhandirvan (Bhandir Vat)
Agra
Mughal garden planting at Agra leaned on neem, mango and cypress for the shade avenues; the neem lines at Ram Bagh follow the oldest surviving Mughal garden plan in India.
Ram Bagh (Aram Bagh) · Taj Nature Walk · Mehtab Bagh
Ajmer
Neem twigs are still chewed as toothbrushes, the bitter leaves are eaten at the Hindu new year, and in village Rajasthan the tree itself stands in for the goddess Shitala at roadside shrines.
Daulat Bagh (Subhash Udyan) · Ana Sagar Lake
Hampi
Neem and jaggery are eaten together at Ugadi, the Deccan new year, as an explicit statement that a year holds both bitterness and sweetness.
Daroji Sloth Bear Sanctuary · Tungabhadra Dam & Gardens · Hemakuta Hill (often)
Hyderabad
Neem twigs are still sold as toothbrushes, the leaves go into stored grain and into the Ugadi and Gudi Padwa new-year dish that mixes bitter with sweet.
KBR National Park · Hyderabad Botanical Garden (Kotla Vijayabhaskara Reddy) · Mahavir Harina Vanasthali National Park
Mayapur
Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, born at Mayapur in 1486, was called Nimai as a child, from nim, the neem tree: tradition places his birth under one. The name is the reason neem is planted through the Mayapur precincts.
Yogapitha · Bethuadahari Wildlife Sanctuary
Pushkar
Neem twigs are still used as toothbrushes, the leaves go into the first meal of the Hindu new year, and the tree is the standing form of the goddess Shitala in village shrines across Rajasthan.
Pushkar Lake · Budha Pushkar Lake (Old Pushkar)
Tirumala
Neem and jaggery are eaten together at Ugadi, the Telugu new year, as a plain statement that a year holds both bitterness and sweetness. Neem twigs were the original toothbrush across the Deccan. It is also the state tree of Andhra Pradesh.
Sri Venkateswara Zoological Park · Kalyani Dam · Kailasakona Waterfalls
Ujjain
Neem twigs are still sold as toothbrushes, the leaves go into stored grain, and the bitter leaves are eaten at the Hindu new year.
Naulakhi Eco Tourism Park · Dewas Tekri (Mata Tekri)