Azadirachta indica
Common name: 
Neem
Margosa Tree
Pronunciation: 
ay-zad-ih-RAK-tuh IN-di-ka
Family: 
Meliaceae
Genus: 
Type: 
Broadleaf
Native to (or naturalized in) Oregon: 
No
  • Broadleaf, semi-evergreen, subtropical tree to 50 ft (15 m) tall, with glabrous, spreading branches.   Bark deeply fissured and flaking in old trees, dark gray outside and reddish inside.  Leaves alternate, compound, pinnate, to 40 cm long, 8-19 leaflets, each 3-7 cm long and 1-3 cm wide, ovate, uneven sided (asymmetric), margin toothed (often dentate), leaflet sometime lobed.  Flowers white, small, sweet-scented, in 15-25 cm long axillary clusters, petals 6 mm long.  Fruit olive-like drupe, 1.5-2 cm long, greenish- yellow to purple, ripen in about 12 weeks from anthesis, usually 1-seeded, seed ovoid or spherical, apex pointed.
  • Sun or partial shade.  Reportedly prefers deep, permeable, sandy soils in sub-arid and sub-humid areas with tropical and subtropical climates.
  • Hardy to USDA Zone 10(subtropical)   Native to India and China, cultivated and naturalized through-out India, Malaysia and Pakistan. 
  • Neem has been promoted in several regions as a potentially valuable new crop, mainly as a source of azadirachtin, an insecticide that can be extracted from its seeds and leaves.  However, neem has escaped cultivation to become naturalized at numerous locations, including Australia, India, Ghana, Kenya, Fiji and Puerto Rico.
  • Azadirachta: apparently derived from the Persian 'azad darakht' meaning 'noble tree".      indica of India.
Click image to enlarge
  • plant habit

    plant habit

  • leafy shoot

    leafy shoot

  • leaves

    leaves

  • leaflets

    leaflets

  • branch

    branch

  • trunk, bark

    trunk, bark