Euphorbia grandifolia
Euphorbia grandifolia
Safety & Hazards
The latex present in all parts of the tree is caustic. It is an ingredient of arrow-poison and is also used as a fish-poison[ 332 Title The Useful Plants of West Tropical Africa. Publication Author Burkil. H. M. Publisher Royal Botanic Gardens; Kew. Year 1985 - 2004 ISBN Description Brief descriptions and details of the uses of over 4,000 plants. A superb, if terse, resource, it is also available electronically on the Web - see http://www.aluka.org/ ]. The latex is recognised as being dangerous to the eyes. It is a common ordeal-poison, being applied directly to the eye. Anyone admitting their crimes quickly receives an antidote - a decoction of dried leaves of this plant made in a young virgin’s urine, or a decoction of an (unspecified) mucilaginous plant. Nevertheless the latex can still cause irreparable damage[ 332 Title The Useful Plants of West Tropical Africa. Publication Author Burkil. H. M. Publisher Royal Botanic Gardens; Kew. Year 1985 - 2004 ISBN Description Brief descriptions and details of the uses of over 4,000 plants. A superb, if terse, resource, it is also available electronically on the Web - see http://www.aluka.org/ ]. The latex is particularly toxic to the mucosae, causing blistering in the mouth[ 332 Title The Useful Plants of West Tropical Africa. Publication Author Burkil. H. M. Publisher Royal Botanic Gardens; Kew. Year 1985 - 2004 ISBN Description Brief descriptions and details of the uses of over 4,000 plants. A superb, if terse, resource, it is also available electronically on the Web - see http://www.aluka.org/ ]. Recent work has shown that the esters of the two groups of diterpene alcohols commonly present in the Euphorbiaceae are responsible for the irritant, co-carcinogenic, piscicidal and toxicological properties[ 332 Title The Useful Plants of West Tropical Africa. Publication Author Burkil. H. M. Publisher Royal Botanic Gardens; Kew. Year 1985 - 2004 ISBN Description Brief descriptions and details of the uses of over 4,000 plants. A superb, if terse, resource, it is also available electronically on the Web - see http://www.aluka.org/ ].
Botanical Description
Euphorbia grandifolia is an evergreen tree with spreading branches that form a large, rounded crown; it usually grows up to 15 metres tall, occasionally to 25 metres. The stout bole can be up to 80cm in diameter, but usually branches from low down[ 299 Title Protabase - Plant Resources of Tropical Africa. Publication Author Website http://www.prota.org Publisher Year 0 ISBN Description An excellent on-line database with detailed information on over 3,200 species of useful plants of Africa. , 332 Title The Useful Plants of West Tropical Africa. Publication Author Burkil. H. M. Publisher Royal Botanic Gardens; Kew. Year 1985 - 2004 ISBN Description Brief descriptions and details of the uses of over 4,000 plants. A superb, if terse, resource, it is also available electronically on the Web - see http://www.aluka.org/ ]. Although very poisonous, the tree is harvested from the wild for local medicinal use. It is grown as a hedge and is widely planted in Africa as a fetish tree for protection against thunder-bolts and to ward off ghosts and evil spirits[ 299 Title Protabase - Plant Resources of Tropical Africa. Publication Author Website http://www.prota.org Publisher Year 0 ISBN Description An excellent on-line database with detailed information on over 3,200 species of useful plants of Africa. , 332 Title The Useful Plants of West Tropical Africa. Publication Author Burkil. H. M. Publisher Royal Botanic Gardens; Kew. Year 1985 - 2004 ISBN Description Brief descriptions and details of the uses of over 4,000 plants. A superb, if terse, resource, it is also available electronically on the Web - see http://www.aluka.org/ ].