Common Name:

General Information

Acalypha wilkesiana is an erect or spreading, evergreen, often suckering shrub that can grow 2 - 4 metres tall, occasionally to 6 metres[, , , ].
The plant is sometimes harvested from the wild for local use as a food and as a medicine. It is widely cultivated as an ornamental plant, being especially valued for its wide range of variegated cultivars, and is also often grown as a hedge.

Known Hazards

The bark has been used as a poison[].

Botanical References

Range

Western Pacific - Bismarck Archipelago, Solomon Islands, Fiji, Tuvalu, Vanuatu.

Habitat

Edges of forests and along the sides of roads; at elevations from 400 - 450 metres[].

Properties

Weed Potential	Yes
Edibility Rating
Medicinal Rating
Other Uses Rating
Habit	Evergreen Shrub
Height	2.00 m
Cultivation Status	Cultivated, Ornamental, Wild

Cultivation Details

Prefers a moist, average to moderately fertile, well-drained soil in full sun to part shade[]. The best foliage colour is produced when growing in full sun[]. Soils must be kept consistently moist, if they dry out then rapid leaf drop usually occurs[].
A widely cultivated ornamental plant, it often escapes from cultivation and has become established in disturbed sites in many areas[].
In areas without a pronounced dry season the plant can flower and produce fruit all year round[].
Plant size can be easily controlled by cutting back, or by pinching out the shoot tips to promote bushiness[].

Edible Uses

Young shoots, without the flowers, are eaten as a cooked vegetable[].

Medicinal

The plant is abortifacient, antibacterial, antifungal, antimicrobial and antinematodal[, ]. The leaves are squeezed into water and the resulting juice is drunk as a treatment for diarrhoea and dysentery[, ]. The juice of fresh leaves is drunk as a treatment for laryngitis[, ]. They are chewed on as a first-aid treatment for a ruptured appendix[]. The fresh shoots are squeezed into water and the solution drunk to regulate menstruation and as an abortifacient[, ]. (Presumably this last treatment is a much stronger juice than that used for diarrhoea[].)
Applied externally, the leaves and young shoots are used to treat skin rashes[]. The leaves are boiled in water and used as a massage for patients with fevers[, ]. The fresh, leafy branches are applied externally in order to induce perspiration, apparently for their rubefacient effect[].
The fresh young leaves, combined with the leaves of Ocimum basilicum, Hibiscus rosa-sinensis and Euodia hortensis, are placed in a bowl of hot water and the vapour released is breathed in to bring relief from pneumonia, malaria, pain and fever[].

An infusion of the leaves and bark is drunk as a treatment for pleurisy[].

Agroforestry Uses:

Plants respond very well to cutting back and can be grown as dense ornamental hedges[, ].

Other Uses

None known

Propagation

Seed -
Cuttings of young shoots[]. Rooting takes place within 4 weeks at 22°c[].

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