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Useful Tropical Plants

Shirakiopsis indica

(Willd.) Esser

Euphorbiaceae

+ Synonyms

Excoecaria diversifolia (Miq.) Müll.Arg.

Excoecaria indica (Willd.) Müll.Arg.

Sapium bingerium Roxb. ex Willd.

Sapium bingyricum Roxb. ex Baill.

Sapium diversifolium (Miq.) Pax

Sapium hurmais Buch.-Ham.

Sapium indicum Willd.

Shirakia indica (Willd.) Hurus.

Stillingia bingyrica Baill.

Stillingia diversifolia Miq.

Stillingia indica (Willd.) Oken

Common Name:

Shirakiopsis indica
Drawing of a flowering and fruiting branch
Photograph by: Rheede tot Drakestein, H.A. van, Hortus Indicus Malabaricus, vol. 4: t. 51 (1683)
Creative Commons License

General Information

Shirakiopsis indica is an evergreen shrub or a tree that usually grows up to 18 metres tall, but can reach up to 30 metres. The thorny bole is twisting, it can be up to 40cm in diameter with spines at the base and buttresses up to 2 metres high, branching from the base[
310
Title
Plant Resources of Southeast Asia
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://proseanet.org/
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
Lots of information on the uses of the plants of SE Asia.
,
327
Title
Euphorbiaceae of Malesia
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://www.nationaalherbarium.nl/euphorbs/
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
An online resource that is still being developed, it gives detailed botanical descriptions of plants in the family Euphorbiaceae found growing in Malesia (the region from Peninsual Malaysia through Indonesia, the Philippines).
].
The plant is harvested from the wild for local use as a food, medicine and source of materials. In view of the variety of uses, this species is considered as having an interesting potential as a crop for places too wet for other crops[
327
Title
Euphorbiaceae of Malesia
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://www.nationaalherbarium.nl/euphorbs/
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
An online resource that is still being developed, it gives detailed botanical descriptions of plants in the family Euphorbiaceae found growing in Malesia (the region from Peninsual Malaysia through Indonesia, the Philippines).
].

Known Hazards

The fruit wall as well as other parts of the plant contains a toxic latex[
327
Title
Euphorbiaceae of Malesia
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://www.nationaalherbarium.nl/euphorbs/
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
An online resource that is still being developed, it gives detailed botanical descriptions of plants in the family Euphorbiaceae found growing in Malesia (the region from Peninsual Malaysia through Indonesia, the Philippines).
]. The latex is copious in unripe fruits and less abundant in other parts of the plant[
310
Title
Plant Resources of Southeast Asia
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://proseanet.org/
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
Lots of information on the uses of the plants of SE Asia.
].
The green fruits are used as a fish poison[
327
Title
Euphorbiaceae of Malesia
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://www.nationaalherbarium.nl/euphorbs/
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
An online resource that is still being developed, it gives detailed botanical descriptions of plants in the family Euphorbiaceae found growing in Malesia (the region from Peninsual Malaysia through Indonesia, the Philippines).
]. Aesculetin, a substance poisonous to fish, has been isolated from the fruit[
310
Title
Plant Resources of Southeast Asia
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://proseanet.org/
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
Lots of information on the uses of the plants of SE Asia.
].

Botanical References

327
Title
Euphorbiaceae of Malesia
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://www.nationaalherbarium.nl/euphorbs/
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
An online resource that is still being developed, it gives detailed botanical descriptions of plants in the family Euphorbiaceae found growing in Malesia (the region from Peninsual Malaysia through Indonesia, the Philippines).

Range

E. Asia - India, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Myanmar, Thailand, Vietnam, Malaysia, Indonesia, New Guinea and the western Pacific

Habitat

Very common to scattered along rivers and seashores; in gallery, tidal and mangrove forests; in primary and advanced secondary forests of swampy and seasonally inundated places; growing in clay, sand, mud; at elevations up to 75 metres[
327
Title
Euphorbiaceae of Malesia
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://www.nationaalherbarium.nl/euphorbs/
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
An online resource that is still being developed, it gives detailed botanical descriptions of plants in the family Euphorbiaceae found growing in Malesia (the region from Peninsual Malaysia through Indonesia, the Philippines).
].

Properties

Edibility Rating *  *
Medicinal Rating *  *
Other Uses Rating *  *
HabitEvergreen Tree
Height15.00 m
Cultivation StatusCultivated, Wild

Cultivation Details



Plants can flower and ripen their fruit all year round[
327
Title
Euphorbiaceae of Malesia
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://www.nationaalherbarium.nl/euphorbs/
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
An online resource that is still being developed, it gives detailed botanical descriptions of plants in the family Euphorbiaceae found growing in Malesia (the region from Peninsual Malaysia through Indonesia, the Philippines).
].

Edible Uses

The seeds contain a drying oil and can be eaten when ripe[
310
Title
Plant Resources of Southeast Asia
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://proseanet.org/
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
Lots of information on the uses of the plants of SE Asia.
,
327
Title
Euphorbiaceae of Malesia
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://www.nationaalherbarium.nl/euphorbs/
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
An online resource that is still being developed, it gives detailed botanical descriptions of plants in the family Euphorbiaceae found growing in Malesia (the region from Peninsual Malaysia through Indonesia, the Philippines).
]. The seeds are 11 - 13mm long and 7 - 8mm wide[
327
Title
Euphorbiaceae of Malesia
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://www.nationaalherbarium.nl/euphorbs/
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
An online resource that is still being developed, it gives detailed botanical descriptions of plants in the family Euphorbiaceae found growing in Malesia (the region from Peninsual Malaysia through Indonesia, the Philippines).
].
The ripe seeds are used as vegetable or as condiment, but the fruit-wall should be removed carefully, because the latex it contains blisters the skin[
310
Title
Plant Resources of Southeast Asia
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://proseanet.org/
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
Lots of information on the uses of the plants of SE Asia.
].

Medicinal

Leaves have been applied to cure fever and gonorrhoea[
327
Title
Euphorbiaceae of Malesia
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://www.nationaalherbarium.nl/euphorbs/
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
An online resource that is still being developed, it gives detailed botanical descriptions of plants in the family Euphorbiaceae found growing in Malesia (the region from Peninsual Malaysia through Indonesia, the Philippines).
]. An infusion of the leaves is taken as a treatment for gonorrhoea[
310
Title
Plant Resources of Southeast Asia
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://proseanet.org/
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
Lots of information on the uses of the plants of SE Asia.
].
The leaves are applied externally as a febrifuge[
310
Title
Plant Resources of Southeast Asia
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://proseanet.org/
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
Lots of information on the uses of the plants of SE Asia.
].

The "juice of the fruits" is applied by Kinomeri to cure toothache[
310
Title
Plant Resources of Southeast Asia
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://proseanet.org/
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
Lots of information on the uses of the plants of SE Asia.
,
327
Title
Euphorbiaceae of Malesia
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://www.nationaalherbarium.nl/euphorbs/
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
An online resource that is still being developed, it gives detailed botanical descriptions of plants in the family Euphorbiaceae found growing in Malesia (the region from Peninsual Malaysia through Indonesia, the Philippines).
].

A decoction of the root bark is used as a purgative and emetic[
310
Title
Plant Resources of Southeast Asia
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://proseanet.org/
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
Lots of information on the uses of the plants of SE Asia.
].

Other Uses

Fruits and leaves are boiled together with clothes as black dye, but also yellow-green colours can be obtained from them[
327
Title
Euphorbiaceae of Malesia
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://www.nationaalherbarium.nl/euphorbs/
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
An online resource that is still being developed, it gives detailed botanical descriptions of plants in the family Euphorbiaceae found growing in Malesia (the region from Peninsual Malaysia through Indonesia, the Philippines).
].
The leaves are a traditional source of a greenish-yellow dye, that turns black upon boiling[
310
Title
Plant Resources of Southeast Asia
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://proseanet.org/
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
Lots of information on the uses of the plants of SE Asia.
].
The leaves can be used to prepare a dye, which gives yarn a greenish-yellow colour or rattan a dark colour. The dyed yarn will gain a black colour when buried in the mud. A black colour can also be obtained by mixing the dye with charcoal and coconut oil[
310
Title
Plant Resources of Southeast Asia
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://proseanet.org/
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
Lots of information on the uses of the plants of SE Asia.
]. This mixture was formerly used in Indonesia to dye artificial hair tassels or wigs made of pineapple fibre black. The dye is also mixed with other dyes[
310
Title
Plant Resources of Southeast Asia
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://proseanet.org/
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
Lots of information on the uses of the plants of SE Asia.
].

The seeds contain 50 - 60% of a greenish-yellow, drying oil[
310
Title
Plant Resources of Southeast Asia
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://proseanet.org/
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
Lots of information on the uses of the plants of SE Asia.
].

The hard, globose fruits are used by children as marbles[
310
Title
Plant Resources of Southeast Asia
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://proseanet.org/
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
Lots of information on the uses of the plants of SE Asia.
].

Sapwood and heartwoood homogenous, dirty white to pale yellow to straw-coloured, of moderate weight and hardness[
327
Title
Euphorbiaceae of Malesia
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://www.nationaalherbarium.nl/euphorbs/
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
An online resource that is still being developed, it gives detailed botanical descriptions of plants in the family Euphorbiaceae found growing in Malesia (the region from Peninsual Malaysia through Indonesia, the Philippines).
]. The timber is used for canoes and is considered suitable for indoor work[
327
Title
Euphorbiaceae of Malesia
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://www.nationaalherbarium.nl/euphorbs/
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
An online resource that is still being developed, it gives detailed botanical descriptions of plants in the family Euphorbiaceae found growing in Malesia (the region from Peninsual Malaysia through Indonesia, the Philippines).
].
The wood is used as fuel; it burns well[
310
Title
Plant Resources of Southeast Asia
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://proseanet.org/
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
Lots of information on the uses of the plants of SE Asia.
].

Propagation

Seed - very slow to germinate, taking 318 - 413 days[
327
Title
Euphorbiaceae of Malesia
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://www.nationaalherbarium.nl/euphorbs/
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
An online resource that is still being developed, it gives detailed botanical descriptions of plants in the family Euphorbiaceae found growing in Malesia (the region from Peninsual Malaysia through Indonesia, the Philippines).
].
Cite as: Tropical Plants Database, Ken Fern. tropical.theferns.info. 2024-03-29. <tropical.theferns.info/viewtropical.php?id=Shirakiopsis+indica>

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