Ashoka (Mast Tree): How to Grow Monoon longifolium in Jaipur

Monoon longifolium

The tall, evergreen "Ashoka" or Mast tree seen along Indian roads. How to plant and care for it in Jaipur, what it offers birds and butterflies, and why it is not the true Ashoka (Saraca asoca).

Published on October 6, 2026
GreenEye Team
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Benefits

For wildlife

The fruits are eaten by birds and fruit bats and are "a favourite food for Koels". It is listed as a bird-attracting plant.
It is a larval food plant of the Tailed Jay butterfly (Graphium agamemnon), and Common Jay (Graphium doson) caterpillars have also been photographed on it.

For gardens and towns

Evergreen, so it stays green all year. The column form casts only a narrow strip of shade; the spreading form gives fuller shade.
It is commonly planted as an avenue tree, noise screen and living boundary.

Wood

Its straight, light, flexible trunks were once used for ship masts, which is how it got the name "Mast tree". Today the soft, even-grained wood is used for pencils, boxes and matchsticks.

Shade and cooling: Evergreen and green all year. The common column form gives only a narrow strip of shade; the spreading form gives fuller shade.
Biodiversity: Its fruits are eaten by birds and fruit bats and are a favourite food of koels; it is listed as a bird-attracting plant.
Biodiversity: A larval food plant of the Tailed Jay butterfly; Common Jay caterpillars have also been recorded on it.
Timber: Straight, light trunks were once used for ship masts; the soft, even-grained wood is used for pencils, boxes and matchsticks.
Cultural: Its leaves are used in festival and wedding decorations, such as door torans in Gujarat.
Ornamental: A formal, striking column shape used for avenues, screens, boundaries and focal points.
Other: Commonly planted as a living screen and noise screen along boundaries.

This article was prepared with AI assistance. Please check important details against the sources shown in each section.

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