''Erythroxylum coca'' is one of two species of cultivated

coca Coca is any of the four cultivated plants in the family Erythroxylaceae, native to western South America. Coca is known worldwide for its psychoactive alkaloid, cocaine. Coca leaves contain cocaine which acts as a mild stimulant when chewed or ...

Description

The coca plant resembles a blackthorn bush, and grows to a height of . The branches are straight, and the leaves, which have a green tint, are thin, opaque, oval, and taper at the extremities. A marked characteristic of the leaf is an areolated portion bounded by two longitudinal curved lines, one line on each side of the midrib, and more conspicuous on the underside of the leaf. Coca plants are mainly found in Colombia. The flowers are small, and disposed in little clusters on short stalks; the corolla is composed of five yellowish-white

petal Petals are modified leaves that form an inner whorl surrounding the reproductive parts of flowers. They are often brightly coloured or unusually shaped to attract pollinators. All of the petals of a flower are collectively known as the ''corol ...

s, the

anther The stamen (: stamina or stamens) is a part consisting of the male reproductive organs of a flower. Collectively, the stamens form the androecium., p. 10 Morphology and terminology A stamen typically consists of a stalk called the filament ...

s are heart-shaped, and the

pistil Gynoecium (; ; : gynoecia) is most commonly used as a collective term for the parts of a flower that produce ovules and ultimately develop into the fruit and seeds. The gynoecium is the innermost whorl (botany), whorl of a flower; it consists ...

consists of three

carpel Gynoecium (; ; : gynoecia) is most commonly used as a collective term for the parts of a flower that produce ovules and ultimately develop into the fruit and seeds. The gynoecium is the innermost whorl of a flower; it consists of (one or more ...

s united to form a three-chambered

ovary The ovary () is a gonad in the female reproductive system that produces ova; when released, an ovum travels through the fallopian tube/ oviduct into the uterus. There is an ovary on the left and the right side of the body. The ovaries are end ...

. The flowers mature into red

berries A berry is a small, pulpy, and often edible fruit. Typically, berries are juicy, rounded, brightly colored, sweet, sour or tart, and do not have a stone fruit, stone or pit (fruit), pit although many wikt:pip#Etymology 2, pips or seeds may be p ...

. Unlike ''Erythroxylum novogranatense'', ''Erythroxylum coca'' requires very acidic soil conditions. Soil acidity and water acidity need to be below pH 5.5, with the optimal value being pH 3.5, similar to that of ''

Rhododendron ''Rhododendron'' (; : ''rhododendra'') is a very large genus of about 1,024 species of woody plants in the Ericaceae, heath family (Ericaceae). They can be either evergreen or deciduous. Most species are native to eastern Asia and the Himalayan ...

'' potting soils. At pH 6.5 and above,

chlorosis In botany, chlorosis is a condition in which leaves produce insufficient chlorophyll. As chlorophyll is responsible for the green color of leaves, chlorotic leaves are pale, yellow, or yellow-white. The affected plant has little or no ability to ...

and leaf distortion occur. The leaves are sometimes eaten by the

larva A larva (; : larvae ) is a distinct juvenile form many animals undergo before metamorphosis into their next life stage. Animals with indirect development such as insects, some arachnids, amphibians, or cnidarians typically have a larval phase ...

e of the

moth Moths are a group of insects that includes all members of the order Lepidoptera that are not Butterfly, butterflies. They were previously classified as suborder Heterocera, but the group is Paraphyly, paraphyletic with respect to butterflies (s ...

'' Eloria noyesi''. Of the two cultivated species of coca, ''Erythroxylum coca'' has greater resistance to the use of glyphosate as an herbicide than ''Erythroxylum novogranatense''.

Taxonomy

Among the genus ''

Erythroxylum ''Erythroxylum'' is a genus of tropical flowering plants in the family Erythroxylaceae. Many of the approximately 200 species contain the tropane alkaloid cocaine,Bieri S, Brachet A, Veuthey J, Christen P. Cocaine distribution in wild Erythroxyl ...

'',

cocaine Cocaine is a tropane alkaloid and central nervous system stimulant, derived primarily from the leaves of two South American coca plants, ''Erythroxylum coca'' and ''Erythroxylum novogranatense, E. novogranatense'', which are cultivated a ...

-rich leaves are obtained from four taxa: * ''Erythroxylum coca'' var. ''coca'' * ''Erythroxylum coca'' var. ''ipadu'' * ''

Erythroxylum novogranatense ''Erythroxylum novogranatense'' is a neotropical species of ''Erythroxylum'' ( Erythroxylaceae). Cocaine is produced from the leaves. Name "Novogranatense" is derived from Latin: ''novo'' (new) and ''granatense'' (Granada). It was named by Wil ...

'' var. ''novogranatense'' * ''Erythroxylum novogranatense'' var. ''truxillense''

Amazonian coca

''Erythroxylum coca'' var. ''ipadu'', also known as Amazonian coca, is closely related to ''Erythroxylum coca'' var. ''coca'', from which it originated relatively recently.Plowman T. "Botanical Perspectives on Coca." Journal of Psychedelic Drugs. 1979. 11(1-2): 103-117. ''E. coca'' var. ''ipadu'' does not escape cultivation or survive as a feral or wild plant like ''E. coca'' var. ''coca'' Plowman T. "The Origin, Evolution, and Diffusion of Coca, Erythroxylum spp., in South and Central America." In: Stone D, ed. Pre-Columbian Plant Migration. Papers of the Peabody Museum of Archaeology and Ethnology. Harvard University. Vol 76. Cambridge MA: Harvard University Press; 1984. p. 125-163. It has been suggested that due to a lack of genetic isolation to differentiate it from ''E. coca'' var. ''coca'', ''E. coca'' var. ''ipadu'' may be better defined as a distinct cultivar than a taxonomic variety.Bohm B, Ganders F, Plowman T. Biosystematics and Evolution of Cultivated Coca (Erythroxylaceae). Systematic Botany. 1982; 7(2): 121-133. Unlike the other species of

which are propagated through seeds, ''E. coca'' var. ''ipadu'', which rarely produce seeds, is propagated through stem cuttings which remain viable for several weeks if kept moist. Since Amazonian coca is vegetatively propagated, entire plantations may be populated from the same clone. ''E. coca'' var. ''ipadu'' is specially adapted to the shifting agriculture of semi-nomadic Amazonian peoples. Since cuttings of ''E. coca'' var. ''coca'' do not easily root, it is likely that ''E. coca'' var. ''ipadu'' has been artificially selected for its ease of vegetative propagation. In contrast to the Andean ''E. coca'' var. ''coca'', Amazonian ''E. coca'' var. ''ipadu'' is typically a weaker plant evidenced by the fact that after a few years plants lose their vigor and easily fall prey to disease or insect infestation. Overharvesting can speed up this process.Plowman T. Amazonian Coca. Journal of Ethnopharmacology. 1981. 3: 195 - 225. Amazonian coca is prepared differently than the other three cultivated cocas. After fire-toasting the leaves dry, they are pulverized. Once sifted, the powder is combined with ashes from plants which serve as the necessary alkaline admixture for coca chewing.

References

Citations

Sources

* Turner C. E., Elsohly M. A., Hanuš L., Elsohly H. N. Isolation of dihydrocuscohygrine from Peruvian coca leaves. Phytochemistry 20 (6), 1403-1405 (1981) * ''History of Coca. The Divine Plant of the Incas'' by W. Golden Mortimer, M.D. 576 pp. And/Or Press San Francisco, 1974. This title has no ISBN. *

External links

Coca leaf: Myths and Reality
website of the Transnational Institute (TNI)
Unscheduling the coca leaf
UN Drug Control website of the Transnational Institute (TNI)

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Alcohol and Drugs History Society The Alcohol and Drugs History Society (ADHS) is a scholarly organization whose members study the history of a variety of illegal, regulated, and unregulated drugs such as opium, alcohol (drug), alcohol, and coffee. Organized in 2004, the ADHS is ...

Erythroxylum coca flower closeup
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Flora of the Andes Flora of the Amazon Flora of western South America Crops originating from the Americas Medicinal plants of South America Taxa named by Jean-Baptiste Lamarck Coca Culture of Bolivia