Jatropha curcas L.

Taxonomy: Plantae > Tracheophyta > Equisetopsida > Malpighiales> Euphorbiaceae > Jatropha > J. curcas

Description: Rhizome short, stout, 2.5-3.5 x 2 cm strongly aromatic; roots stout, fleshy, often terminating in ovoid or spindle-shaped, 2-5 x 0.5 cm, yellow-white tubers. Leafy shoot 50-65 cm high. Leaves few, radical, erect; lamina, 15-30 x 5-12 cm, oblong-lanceolate, with acute base and gradually acuminate apex, purple beneath, mottled green above, upper surface glabrous, lower surface densely covered with very short hairs; petiole 6-8 cm long; ligule small, 2-4 mm long, hairy. Inflorescence appearing before the leaves, shortly peduncled, enclosed within greenish-purple, narrow sheaths; 4-12 flowered, usually 1-2 flowers open at the same time. Bracts imbricating, 3-3.5 cm long, oblong, tip acute, tip sparsely hairy. Bracteoles upto 2.5 cm long, bidentate, glabrous. Calyx 5-6 cm long, unilaterally split, tip with two dorsal ridges, light violetish, transparent, sparsely hairy. Corolla tube slightly longer than the calyx, 6-7 cm long, slender, cylindric, nearly erect, obliquely funnel-shaped towards the mouth; lobes white, very narrow, c. 5 x 0.8 cm, lanceolate with acuminate tip. Labellum 5.5-6 x 2-2.5 cm, broadly ovate, deeply divided into 2 suborbicular lobes, lilac with deep violet in the centre, with many radiating violet lines. Lateral staminodes 5-5.5 x 1.6 cm, ovate elliptic, tip acuminate, white with a violet tinge towards the margin, a small cleft on the outer margin in the middle, glabrous. Filament short, erect, 5 mm long, sparsely pubescent; thecae 8 mm long, parallel, connective prolonged into a crest, c. 1.2 x 0.5 cm, broadly ovate, divided half way down into two, lanceolate or subulate segments, upper half light violetish. Style long, filiform, stigma slightly flattened and cupular, margin hairy. Epigynous glands two, filiform, erect, embracing the lower part of the style. Ovary 5 x 3 mm, tricarpellary, with many ovules on axile placenta, glabrous. Fruiting not common.

Flowering and Fruiting : April-June

Uses : Ayurveda, Folk medicine, Homoeopathy, Unani, Siddha, Traditional chinese medicine. Leaves are boiled in pure water and the juice is taken and consume to cure jaundice. The seed cakes, produced as a by-product of pressing the oil, make an excellent organic fertilizer or protein-rich livestock feed. The oil from the seed used as climatic protection, varnishes, illuminants, soap, orga

Cultivation : Cultivated , Wild

References

http://www.plantsoftheworldonline.org

https://indiabiodiversity.org