Euphorbia neriifolia (PROSEA)

Plant Resources of South-East Asia Introduction

List of species

Euphorbia neriifolia L.

Protologue: Sp. pl. 1: 451 (1753).

Synonyms

• Euphorbia ligularia Roxb. (1832).

Vernacular names

• Common milk hedge, hedge euphorbia, oleander spurge (En)
• Indonesia: sudu-sudu, susudu, susuru
• Malaysia: sesudu, sudu-sudu (Peninsular)
• Philippines: bait (Pampangan, Tagalog), soro-soro (Tagalog), sorog-sorog (Pampamgan, Tagalog)
• Thailand: som chao (central)
• Vietnam: xương rồng, xương rồng rào, xương rồng ta.

Distribution

Probably of South-Asian origin, but nowadays locally cultivated and naturalizing in Sri Lanka, India, Burma (Myanmar), Thailand and throughout the Malesian region except for Borneo; also occasionally cultivated in other tropical regions.

Uses

In Malaysia and the Philippines, the latex from heated leaves is applied externally to relieve earache. The latex may also be used as a purgative, diuretic, vermifuge, and to treat asthma. In Guatemala, the latex is applied on haemorrhoids. In El Salvador, it is used to relieve sore throat and cracked lips, and also to cure gonorrhoea. In the Moluccas, the bark has been used as a strong purgative. The root is considered antiseptic. In India, the latex is used to remove warts and cutaneous eruptions. The leaves and roots have been used as a fish poison. E. neriifolia is fairly commonly planted as a live fence and for ornamental purposes. When boiled with syrup the leaves and slices of the branches can be made into sweetmeats. The nicely figured and aromatic wood is used for small objects such as kris handles. The leaves can be eaten, even raw. In India, the latex is smeared on cuts in Borassus flabellifer L. made by tappers, in order to prevent attack by red weevil.

Observations

• An armed, succulent shrub or small tree up to 8 m tall, branches obtusely 5-angular, with pairs of spines of 4-12 mm long arising from the ribs.
• Leaves alternate, obovate to narrowly oblanceolate, (5-)15-30 cm × (1.5-)2-7.5 cm, base cuneate to attenuate, apex rounded, margin entire, glabrous.
• Inflorescence lateral, composed of 3-7 cyathia on short, rigid, forked peduncles, bracts ovate.
• Cyathia with 5 oblong glands, 1.5-2 mm × 4-5 mm.
• Capsule 10-12 mm in diameter, glabrous.

E. neriifolia grows well in dry, often rocky places.

Selected sources

• 97.Backer, C.A. & Bakhuizen van den Brink Jr, R.C., 1963-1968. Flora of Java. 3 volumes. Noordhoff, Groningen, the Netherlands. Vol. 1 (1963) 647 pp., Vol. 2 (1965) 641 pp., Vol. 3 (1968) 761 pp.
• 202.Burkill, I.H., 1966. A dictionary of the economic products of the Malay Peninsula. Revised reprint. 2 volumes. Ministry of Agriculture and Co operatives, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Vol. 1 (A-H) pp. 1-1240. Vol. 2 (I- Z) pp. 1241-2444.
• 287.Council of Scientific and Industrial Research, 1948-1976. The wealth of India: a dictionary of Indian raw materials & industrial products. 11 volumes. Publications and Information Directorate, New Delhi, India.
• 580.Heyne, K., 1950. De nuttige planten van Indonesië [The useful plants of Indonesia]. 3rd Edition. 2 volumes. W. van Hoeve, 's Gravenhage, the Netherlands/Bandung, Indonesia. 1660 + CCXLI pp.
• 638.Huxley, A., Griffiths, M. & Levy, M., 1992. The new Royal Horticultural Society dictionary of gardening. 4 volumes. The MacMillan Press Ltd., London, United Kingdom. 3353 pp.
• 979.Morton, J.F., 1981. Atlas of medicinal plants of Middle America. Bahamas to Yucatan. Charles C. Thomas, Springfield, Illinois, United States. 1420 pp.
• 1126.Perry, L.M., 1980. Medicinal plants of East and Southeast Asia. Attributed properties and uses. MIT Press, Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States & London, United Kingdom. 620 pp.
• 1128.Pételot, A., 1952-1954. Les plantes médicinales du Cambodge, du Laos et du Vietnam [The medicinal plants of Cambodia, Laos and Vietnam]. 4 volumes. Centre National de Recherches Scientifiques et Techniques, Saigon, Vietnam.
• 1135.Philcox, D., 1997. Euphorbiaceae. In: Dassanayake, M.D. & Clayton, W.D. (Editors): A revised handbook to the flora of Ceylon. Vol. 11. A.A. Balkema, Rotterdam, the Netherlands. pp. 80-283.
• 1178.Quisumbing, E., 1978. Medicinal plants of the Philippines. Katha Publishing Co., Quezon City, the Philippines. 1262 pp.
• 1181.Radcliffe Smith, A., 1972. Euphorbia L. In: Airy Shaw, H. K. The Euphorbiaceae of Siam. Kew Bulletin 26: 261-268.
• 1183.Radcliffe Smith, A., 1980. Euphorbia L. In: Airy Shaw, H.K. The Euphorbiaceae of New Guinea. Kew Bulletin Additional Series VIII. Her Majesty's Stationary Office, London, United Kingdom. pp. 81-88.
• 1184.Radcliffe Smith, A., 1981. Euphorbia L. In: Airy Shaw, H.K. The Euphorbiaceae of Sumatra. Kew Bulletin 36: 294-296.
• 1185.Radcliffe Smith, A., 1981. Euphorbia L. In: Airy Shaw, H.K. An alphabetical enumeration of the Euphorbiaceae of the Philippine Islands. Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, United Kingdom. pp. 24-26.
• 1186.Radcliffe Smith, A., 1982. Euphorbia L. In: Airy Shaw, H. K. The Euphorbiaceae of Central Malesia. Kew Bulletin 37: 18-20.
• 1311.Seshagirirao, K., Narasimha, M. & Prasad, V., 1995. Purification and partial characterization of a lectin from Euphorbia neriifolia latex. Biochemistry and Molecular Biology International 35(6): 1199-1204.
• 1380.Smitinand, T., 1980. Thai plant names. Royal Forest Department, Bangkok, Thailand. 379 pp.

Main genus page

• Euphorbia (Medicinal plants)

Authors

• Nguyen Nghia Thin & M.S.M. Sosef