Croton tiglium L.
Family
Euphorbiaceae
Synonyms
None
Vernacular Names
| Malaysia | Changkian, chemengkian, bua patu (Peninsular). |
| English | Purging croton. |
| Indonesia | Simalakian (Minangkabau), kemalakian (Sundanese), ceraken (Javanese). |
| Thailand |
Ma khaang (Northern), salot (Central). |
| Philippines | Tuba (most dialects), saligau (Ilokano, Ibanag), tubang-makaisa (Bikol, Tagalog). |
| Cambodia | Bat khlok. |
| Laos | Mark tot. |
| Vietnam | Ba d[aaj]u, m[aws]c v[as]t, cong kh[oo]i. |
Geographical Distributions
Croton tiglium is from India and Sri Lanka, eastward to China, Indo-China, Thailand and throughout Malaysia.
Description
Croton tiglium is a shrub or treelet that can reach up to 3 m tall.
The leaves are ovate, measuring 7.5-17 cm x 4-9.5 cm, with broadly rounded to attenuate base, with 2 sessile to distinct glands stalked on the margin, obtuse to acute at apex, with very shallowly serrate margin, with a few star-shaped hairs at the lower surface, basally 5-nerved, with caduceus stipules, awl-shaped and measuring 1.5-3.5 mm long.
The inflorescence is hairless while the flowers are staminate. The sepals are slightly hairless and with bearded tips while the petals are narrowly oblong and hairy. There are 15-20 hairless stamens with small disk glands. The sepals are villous at the base, petals are absent, with obscure disk, annular and with oblong ovary.
The fruit is obtusely trigonous, measure 2-2.5 cm in diametre, white and scabrid with star-shaped hairs.
Ecology / Cultivation
Croton tiglium is found in a wide range of vegetation and soil types, up to 1500 m altitude, planted around villages. It mainly flowers from October to May in Java.
Line Drawing / Photograph
References
- Plant Resources of South-East Asia No.12(2): Medicinal and poisonous plants 2.
