''Croton'' is an extensive flowering plant genus in the

spurge ''Euphorbia'' is a very large and diverse genus of flowering plants, commonly called spurge, in the family Euphorbiaceae. "Euphorbia" is sometimes used in ordinary English to collectively refer to all members of Euphorbiaceae (in deference to t ...

family, Euphorbiaceae. The plants of this genus were described and introduced to Europeans by Georg Eberhard Rumphius. The common names for this genus are rushfoil and croton, but the latter also refers to '' Codiaeum variegatum''. The generic name comes from the Greek ('), which means " tick" and refers to the shape of the seeds of certain species.

Description

''Croton'' is a diverse and complex taxonomic group of plants ranging from herbs and shrubs to trees. A well-known member of this genus is ''

Croton tiglium ''Croton tiglium'', known as purging croton, is a plant species in the family Euphorbiaceae. ''C. tiglium'' is also called jamaal gota in Bangladesh. Etymology The specific name ''tiglium'' is of obscure origin. It may come from the traditional ...

'', a

shrub A shrub (often also called a bush) is a small-to-medium-sized perennial woody plant. Unlike herbaceous plants, shrubs have persistent woody stems above the ground. Shrubs can be either deciduous or evergreen. They are distinguished from trees ...

native to Southeast Asia. It was first mentioned in European literature by

Cristóbal Acosta Cristóvão da Costa or Cristóbal Acosta and Latinized as Christophorus Acosta Africanus (c. 1525 c. 1594) was a Portuguese doctor and natural historian. He is considered a pioneer in the study of plants from the Orient, especially their use i ...

in 1578 as lignum pavanae. The oil, used in

herbal medicine Herbal medicine (also herbalism) is the study of pharmacognosy and the use of medicinal plants, which are a basis of traditional medicine. With worldwide research into pharmacology, some herbal medicines have been translated into modern remed ...

as a violent purgative, is extracted from its seeds. Currently, it is considered unsafe and it is no longer listed in the

pharmacopeia A pharmacopoeia, pharmacopeia, or pharmacopoea (from the obsolete typography ''pharmacopœia'', meaning "drug-making"), in its modern technical sense, is a book containing directions for the identification of compound medicines, and published by ...

s of many countries.

Taxonomy

Uses

Traditional uses

''C. tiglium'' oil has been used in traditional Chinese medicine to treat severe constipation or heal lesions, and is used as a purgative.

Wang Haogu Wang Haogu (; 1200–1264), courtesy name Haizang (), was a Yuan dynasty physician and writer. He authored a treatise on insanity and its remedies, in addition to a '' materia medica'' that uniquely categorised drugs according to the theory of the ' ...

first observed that croton seeds could also be used to treat diarrhea. It is a source of the organic compound phorbol and its tumor-promoting esters, such as 12-''O''-tetradecanoylphorbol-13-acetate. In the Amazon, the red latex from the species ''C. lechleri'', known as

sangre de drago ''Croton lechleri'' is a species of flowering plant in the spurge family, Euphorbiaceae, that is native to northwestern South America. It is commonly known as ''sangre de grado'' (Peruvian Spanish), ''sangre de drago'' (Ecuadorian Spanish) or '' ...

(dragon's blood), is used as a "liquid bandage", as well as for other medicinal purposes, by native peoples.

Food uses

Cascarilla ('' C. eluteria'') bark is used to flavour the liquor Campari and Vermouth.

Biofuel uses

In Kenya, ''Croton'' nuts, such as those from '' C. megalocarpus'', were found to be a more economical source of

biofuel Biofuel is a fuel that is produced over a short time span from biomass, rather than by the very slow natural processes involved in the formation of fossil fuels, such as oil. According to the United States Energy Information Administration (E ...

than ''

Jatropha curcas ''Jatropha curcas'' is a species of flowering plant in the spurge family, Euphorbiaceae, that is native to the American tropics, most likely Mexico and Central America. It is originally native to the tropical areas of the Americas from Mexico to ...

''. ''Jatropha curcas'' requires as much as 20,000 L of water to make a litre of biofuel, while ''Croton'' trees grow wild and yield about 35% oil. ''Croton'' trees are planted as a windbreak in Kenya, and its use as a source of biofuel may benefit rural economies there. As arable land is under population pressure, people have been cutting down the windbreaks to expand farmland. This new use may save the windbreaks, which should help fight

desertification Desertification is a type of land degradation in drylands in which biological productivity is lost due to natural processes or induced by human activities whereby fertile areas become increasingly arid. It is the spread of arid areas caused by ...

Ecology

''Croton'' species are used as food plants by the larvae of some

Lepidoptera Lepidoptera ( ) is an order (biology), order of insects that includes butterfly, butterflies and moths (both are called lepidopterans). About 180,000 species of the Lepidoptera are described, in 126 Family (biology), families and 46 Taxonomic r ...

species, including ''

Schinia citrinellus ''Schinia citrinella'' is a moth of the family Noctuidae. It is found in North America, including Arizona, California, Colorado, Kansas, Nebraska, Nevada, New Mexico, Oklahoma Oklahoma (; Choctaw language, Choctaw: ; chr, Ꭳ� ...

'', which feeds exclusively on the plant. Croton Petra

Distribution

Croton tiglium - Köhler–s Medizinal-Pflanzen-197

The genus is pantropical, with some species extending into temperate areas.''Croton'' L.
USDA PLANTS It is one of the largest and most complex genera of

angiosperm Flowering plants are plants that bear flowers and fruits, and form the clade Angiospermae (), commonly called angiosperms. The term "angiosperm" is derived from the Greek words ('container, vessel') and ('seed'), and refers to those plants th ...

s in Madagascar, where up to 150 ''Croton'' species are endemic.

Formerly placed here

References

External links

Croton Research Network

{{Authority control Euphorbiaceae genera Medicinal plants Pantropical flora