Croton joufra
Roxb., Fl. Ind., ed. Carey 3: 685. 1832; Hook.f., Fl. Brit. India 5: 387. 1887.
Asm.: Mahudi; Beng.: Joufra; Kh.: Dieng-lamosuh; Man.: Thauang; Mikir: Martuarong;
Naga: Inthap-ching.
Shrubs or trees, deciduous, 3 - 15 m tall; all parts except older branchlets and leaves densely lepidote. Leaves elliptic to oblong or obovate to oblanceolate, cuneate or acute at base, shallowly dentate-serrate to subentire along margins, acuminate to acute or sometimes obtuse to rounded at apex, 5 - 30 (- 35) x 2 – 9 cm, thinly coriaceous to chartaceous, glabrous, penninerved; lateral nerves 6 - 19 pairs; basal glands 2, sessile; petioles 1 - 5 cm long, densely lepidote to glabrous. Inflorescences up to 35 cm long, rarely unisexual; bracts triangular or deltoid, 0.7 - 2 mm long. Male flowers: pedicels 2.5 - 6 mm long; sepals ovate to oblong, 1.5 - 3.5 x 1 - 2.5 mm; petals oblong-elliptic to oblanceolate, 2 - 3 x 0.8 - 1.5 mm; stamens 10 - 13, 3 - 4.5 mm long. Female flowers: pedicels 1.5 - 6 mm long; sepals triangular-acuminate to ovate, 1.5 - 3 x 1 - 2.5 mm; petals filiform, 0.5 - 3 mm long; ovary ovoid or oblong-ellipsoid, 2.5 - 4 x 2.5 - 3.5 mm, with irregular longitudinal ridges, usually obtuse at apex; styles 4 - 7 mm long. Capsules ovoid to ellipsoid or oblong to obovoid, very shallowly 3-lobed, 2.5 - 4 x 2 - 3 cm.
Fl. & Fr. Jan. - Dec.
Distrib. India: Common in mixed forests, deciduous forests, edges of forests or scrub forests, up to 1300 m altitude. Assam, Arunachal Pradesh, Nagaland, Mizoram, Tripura and Meghalaya.
Bhutan, Bangladesh, Myanmar, China and Vietnam.
Uses. Plant contains alkaloids and tannins. In N.E. India, the leaves, seeds and roots are used in tribal medicine (unspecified) and the bark employed in veterinary medicine. Bark and leaves also used for fermenting liquor. The seeds used as arrow poison by the Khasi tribe of Meghalaya.
Shrubs or trees, deciduous, 3 - 15 m tall; all parts except older branchlets and leaves densely lepidote. Leaves elliptic to oblong or obovate to oblanceolate, cuneate or acute at base, shallowly dentate-serrate to subentire along margins, acuminate to acute or sometimes obtuse to rounded at apex, 5 - 30 (- 35) x 2 – 9 cm, thinly coriaceous to chartaceous, glabrous, penninerved; lateral nerves 6 - 19 pairs; basal glands 2, sessile; petioles 1 - 5 cm long, densely lepidote to glabrous. Inflorescences up to 35 cm long, rarely unisexual; bracts triangular or deltoid, 0.7 - 2 mm long. Male flowers: pedicels 2.5 - 6 mm long; sepals ovate to oblong, 1.5 - 3.5 x 1 - 2.5 mm; petals oblong-elliptic to oblanceolate, 2 - 3 x 0.8 - 1.5 mm; stamens 10 - 13, 3 - 4.5 mm long. Female flowers: pedicels 1.5 - 6 mm long; sepals triangular-acuminate to ovate, 1.5 - 3 x 1 - 2.5 mm; petals filiform, 0.5 - 3 mm long; ovary ovoid or oblong-ellipsoid, 2.5 - 4 x 2.5 - 3.5 mm, with irregular longitudinal ridges, usually obtuse at apex; styles 4 - 7 mm long. Capsules ovoid to ellipsoid or oblong to obovoid, very shallowly 3-lobed, 2.5 - 4 x 2 - 3 cm.
Fl. & Fr. Jan. - Dec.
Distrib. India: Common in mixed forests, deciduous forests, edges of forests or scrub forests, up to 1300 m altitude. Assam, Arunachal Pradesh, Nagaland, Mizoram, Tripura and Meghalaya.
Bhutan, Bangladesh, Myanmar, China and Vietnam.
Uses. Plant contains alkaloids and tannins. In N.E. India, the leaves, seeds and roots are used in tribal medicine (unspecified) and the bark employed in veterinary medicine. Bark and leaves also used for fermenting liquor. The seeds used as arrow poison by the Khasi tribe of Meghalaya.
