Croton malabaricus
Bedd., Forester's Man. 204. 1873 & Icon. Pl. Ind. Orient. t. 181.
1874; Hook.f., Fl. Brit. India 5: 386. 1887.
Mal.: Anakkuru, Kolavacchi, Koluvasi, Pimbaram, Thenadal; Tam.: Anakkutu,
Malamgouri, Thavattu-polavu.
Trees, 6 - 30 m tall, all parts except old branches and upper surface of leaves densely lepidote. Leaves ovate, elliptic to suborbicular or oblong-elliptic, rounded, obtuse to acute at base, entire to serrulate along margins, acuminate or caudate at apex, 5 - 24 x 2.5 - 10 cm, membranous to chartaceous, glabrous above, penninerved; lateral nerves 4 - 9 pairs; basal glands sessile; petioles 1 - 7.5 cm long; stipules filiform, 0.8 - 2 mm long. Inflorescences 2.5 - 12 cm long. Male flowers: pedicels 2 - 6 mm long; sepals ovate to elliptic or triangular, 2 - 3.5 x 1 - 1.5 mm; petals narrowly oblong-elliptic to oblanceolate, 2 - 3.5 x 0.7 - 1.8 mm; stamens 10 or 11 (- 15), 4 - 6.5 mm long. Female flowers: pedicels 3 - 5 (- 10) mm long; sepals oblong to narrowly ovate-oblong, 3.5 - 5 x 1.5 - 2 mm; petals 0 - 5, lanceolate or filiform, 0.5 - 4 mm; ovary obovoid, 2 - 3 x 1.5 - 2.5 mm; styles 5 - 8 mm long, bifid above. Capsules obovoid, shallowly 3-lobed, 1.8 - 2.5 x ca 1.5 cm, shortly stipitate.
Fl. & Fr. Jan. - Dec.
Distrib. India: Western Ghats in open forests or semievergreen forests up to 1200 m altitude. Karnataka, Kerala and Tamil Nadu.
Endemic.
Notes. Pollen grains inaperturate, sexine with crotonoid pattern. D = 52 ìm (45 to 57) (Tissot, Chikhi & Nayar, Pollen of wet evergreen forests of Western Ghats, India. Publ. du depart. D’ecologie, Inst. Francias de Pondichery, 28, pl. 28. 1994).
Trees, 6 - 30 m tall, all parts except old branches and upper surface of leaves densely lepidote. Leaves ovate, elliptic to suborbicular or oblong-elliptic, rounded, obtuse to acute at base, entire to serrulate along margins, acuminate or caudate at apex, 5 - 24 x 2.5 - 10 cm, membranous to chartaceous, glabrous above, penninerved; lateral nerves 4 - 9 pairs; basal glands sessile; petioles 1 - 7.5 cm long; stipules filiform, 0.8 - 2 mm long. Inflorescences 2.5 - 12 cm long. Male flowers: pedicels 2 - 6 mm long; sepals ovate to elliptic or triangular, 2 - 3.5 x 1 - 1.5 mm; petals narrowly oblong-elliptic to oblanceolate, 2 - 3.5 x 0.7 - 1.8 mm; stamens 10 or 11 (- 15), 4 - 6.5 mm long. Female flowers: pedicels 3 - 5 (- 10) mm long; sepals oblong to narrowly ovate-oblong, 3.5 - 5 x 1.5 - 2 mm; petals 0 - 5, lanceolate or filiform, 0.5 - 4 mm; ovary obovoid, 2 - 3 x 1.5 - 2.5 mm; styles 5 - 8 mm long, bifid above. Capsules obovoid, shallowly 3-lobed, 1.8 - 2.5 x ca 1.5 cm, shortly stipitate.
Fl. & Fr. Jan. - Dec.
Distrib. India: Western Ghats in open forests or semievergreen forests up to 1200 m altitude. Karnataka, Kerala and Tamil Nadu.
Endemic.
Notes. Pollen grains inaperturate, sexine with crotonoid pattern. D = 52 ìm (45 to 57) (Tissot, Chikhi & Nayar, Pollen of wet evergreen forests of Western Ghats, India. Publ. du depart. D’ecologie, Inst. Francias de Pondichery, 28, pl. 28. 1994).
