Erythroxylum novogranatense (PROSEA)

Plant Resources of South-East Asia Introduction

List of species

1, flowering twig; 2, short-styled flower with petals removed; 3, long-styled flower with petals removed; 4, petal showing 3-lobed ligule-like appendage; 5, fresh fruit; 6, dried fruit (Achmad Satiri Nurhaman)

Erythroxylum novogranatense (Morris) Hieron.

Protologue: Bot. Jahrb. 20, Beibl. 49: 35 (1895).

Synonyms

• Erythroxylum coca Lamk var. novogranatense Morris (1889),
• Erythroxylum coca Lamk var. spruceanum Burck (1890),
• Erythroxylum truxillense Rusby (1900).

Vernacular names

• Java coca, Truxillo coca (En).

Distribution

E. novogranatense var. novogranatense (Colombian coca) is native to Colombia and Venezuela, but its adaptability and easy propagation has led to a wide distribution over the Old and New World tropics. E. novogranatense was introduced in the Bogor Botanical Gardens in 1875, and by 1888 large quantities of seed were already being distributed. In South-East Asia, it has been grown in Peninsular Malaysia, western and eastern Java, northern Borneo, northern Sulawesi (Minahasa) and the Philippines (Luzon). E. novogranatense var. truxillense (Trujillo coca) is grown in arid areas in northern Peru. Neither of these varieties is known from wild populations.

Uses

The medicinal uses of E. novogranatense are similar to those of E. coca. It used to be grown as a hedge plant in Malesia, up to 750 m altitude, for its bushiness and the contrast of its light green foliage with the bright red berries, but its cultivation is now prohibited. Although of importance as a plantation crop for the Malesian region in the past, it has since long lost its importance. E. novogranatense var. truxillense is highly regarded for its flavour and cocaine content, and has long been used for coca-flavoured beverages.

Observations

• A shrub of 1-3 m tall, with minute lenticels on the branches.
• Leaves abundant along the twigs, rather persistent, obovate-oblong, (2-)3-6(-7) cm × 1-3 cm, base attenuate, apex rounded or sometimes emarginate, always with a mucronate tip or notch.
• Flowers in clusters of 1-4(-8), pedicel 5-10 mm, calyx with a 1-1.5 mm long tube and 5 lobes, triangular-ovate, 1.5-2 mm × 1 mm, acuminate, petals oblong, convex, (3.5-)4(-5) mm × 2 mm, white or greenish-white.
• Fruit ellipsoid-oblong, red.

E. novogranatense has heterodistylous flowers, but, in contrast to E. coca, at least the long-styled type is self-compatible.

Selected sources

• 193.Bruneton, J., 1995. Pharmacognosy, phytochemistry, medicinal plants. Technique & Documentation Lavoisier, Paris, France. 915 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.
• 284.Corner, E.J.H., 1988. Wayside trees of Malaya. 3rd Edition. 2 volumes. The Malayan Nature Society, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. 774 pp.
• 328.de Jong, A.W.K., 1948. Coca. In: van Hall, C.J.J. & van de Koppel, C. (Editors). De Landbouw in de Indische Archipel [The agriculture in the Indonesian Archipelago]. Vol. 2a. W. van Hoeve, 's Gravenhage, the Netherlands. pp. 866-888.
• 466.Ganders, F.R., 1979. Heterostyly in Erythroxylum coca (Erythroxylaceae). Botanical Journal of the Linnean Society 78: 11-20.
• 549.Hänsel, R. et al. (Editors), 1992. Hagers Handbuch der Pharmazeutishe Praxis [Hagers handbook of the practice of pharmacology]. Springer Verlag, Berlin, Germany. 1209 pp.
• 555.Hardman, J.G., Limbird, L.E., Molinoff, P.B., Ruddon, R.W. & Goodman Gilman, A. (Editors), 1996. Goodman & Gilman's the pharmacological basis of therapeutics. 9th Edition. McGraw Hill, New York, United States. 1905 pp.
• 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.
• 682.Johnson, E.L., 1989. Seed viability of two Erythroxylum species stored at 4°C. Planta Medica 55(7): 691.
• 683.Johnson, E.L., 1996. Alkaloid content in Erythroxylum coca tissue during reproductive development. Phytochemistry 42(1): 35-38.
• 684.Johnson, E.L. & Fox, C.D., 1996. Biomass accumulation and alkaloid content in leaves of Erythroxylum coca and Erythroxylum novogranatense var. novogranatense grown in soil with varying pH. Journal of Plant Physiology 149(3-4): 444-450.
• 1119.Payens, J.P.D.W., 1958. Erythroxylaceae. In: van Steenis, C.G.G.J. (General editor). Flora Malesiana. Series 1, Vol. 5(4). Noordhoff Kolff N.V., Djakarta, Indonesia. pp. 543-552.
• 1145.Plowman, T., 1982. The identification of coca (Erythroxylum species): 1860-1910. Botanical Journal of the Linnean Society 84: 329-353.
• 1146.Plowman, T. & Rivier, L., 1983. Cocaine and cinnamoylcocaine content of Erythroxylum species. Annals of Botany 51: 641-659.
• 1147.Plowman, T., Rudenberg, L. & Greene, C.W., 1978. Chromosome numbers in neotropical Erythroxylum (Erythroxylaceae). Botanical Museum Leaflets 26(5): 203-209.
• 1167.Purseglove, J.W., 1968-1972. Tropical crops. Longman, London. United Kingdom. Dicotyledons. 2 volumes (1968), 719 pp. Monocotyledons. 2 volumes (1972), 607 pp.
• 1277.Samuelsson, G. (Editor), 1992. Drugs of natural origin, a textbook of pharmacognosy. Swedish Pharmaceutical Press, Stockholm, Sweden. 320 pp.
• 1278.Sands, D.C., Darlington, L., McCarthy, M.K., Pilgeram, A.L. & Ford, E.F., 1995. An effective and host specific pathogen of Erythroxylum spp. Phytopathology 85: 1118.

Main genus page

• Erythroxylum (Medicinal plants)

Authors

• R.C.K. Chung & M. Brink