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Useful Tropical Plants

Tabernaemontana crassa

Benth.

Apocynaceae

+ Synonyms

Conopharyngia crassa (Benth.) Stapf

Conopharyngia durissima (Stapf) Stapf

Common Name: Adam's Apple Flower

Tabernaemontana crassa
Plant growing in Ho'omaluhia Botanical Garden, Oahu, Hawaii
Photograph by: Drew Avery
Creative Commons License
Tabernaemontana crassa Tabernaemontana crassa Tabernaemontana crassa

General Information

Adam's apple flower is an ornamental shrub or small tree with sweetly scented showy flowers that grows up to 15 metres tall[
299
Title
Protabase - Plant Resources of Tropical Africa.
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://www.prota.org
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
An excellent on-line database with detailed information on over 3,200 species of useful plants of Africa.
].
The plant is often used medicinally, being harvested from wild plants[
299
Title
Protabase - Plant Resources of Tropical Africa.
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://www.prota.org
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
An excellent on-line database with detailed information on over 3,200 species of useful plants of Africa.
]. The powdered bark is traded internationally in herbal medicine shops[
299
Title
Protabase - Plant Resources of Tropical Africa.
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://www.prota.org
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
An excellent on-line database with detailed information on over 3,200 species of useful plants of Africa.
].

Known Hazards

The plant is very toxic[
299
Title
Protabase - Plant Resources of Tropical Africa.
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://www.prota.org
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
An excellent on-line database with detailed information on over 3,200 species of useful plants of Africa.
].
The latex is extremely caustic: one drop in the eye may cause blindness[
299
Title
Protabase - Plant Resources of Tropical Africa.
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://www.prota.org
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
An excellent on-line database with detailed information on over 3,200 species of useful plants of Africa.
].

Botanical References


Range

Western Tropical Africa - Sierra Leone to Central African Republic and DR Congo, south to Angola.

Habitat

Occurs widely in the understorey of open forest, forest clearings or bush, also along the coast, less often in gallery forest, from sea-level up to elevations of 2,000 metres[
299
Title
Protabase - Plant Resources of Tropical Africa.
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Author
 
Website
http://www.prota.org
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
An excellent on-line database with detailed information on over 3,200 species of useful plants of Africa.
].

Properties

Medicinal Rating *  *  *
Other Uses Rating *  *
HabitTree
Height15.00 m
Cultivation StatusWild

Cultivation Details

A plant of the humid tropics[
299
Title
Protabase - Plant Resources of Tropical Africa.
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://www.prota.org
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
An excellent on-line database with detailed information on over 3,200 species of useful plants of Africa.
].

Plants can be found flowering and fruiting throughout the year[
299
Title
Protabase - Plant Resources of Tropical Africa.
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://www.prota.org
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
An excellent on-line database with detailed information on over 3,200 species of useful plants of Africa.
]. The fruits are mature after 1 year[
299
Title
Protabase - Plant Resources of Tropical Africa.
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://www.prota.org
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
An excellent on-line database with detailed information on over 3,200 species of useful plants of Africa.
].

Edible Uses

None known

Medicinal

Adam's apple flower is a very toxic plant, but it is still often used in African traditional medicine. Research has shown the presence of a wide range of alkaloids in all parts of the plant and these are primarily responsible for the medicinal actions[
299
Title
Protabase - Plant Resources of Tropical Africa.
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://www.prota.org
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
An excellent on-line database with detailed information on over 3,200 species of useful plants of Africa.
].
Coronaridine and conopharyngine exhibit central nervous system stimulant effects. In regular doses, conopharyngine has hypotensive properties, causes bradycardia and decreases body temperature. High doses of ibogaine, ibogamine and voacangine produce convulsions and asphyxia. Coronaridine showed diuresis and significant hypoglycaemic activity. It is an effective antifertility agent because of its oestrogenic activity. It also has leishmanicidal activity. Furthermore, apparicine, conopharyngine, coronaridine and perivine have local analgesic activity. The monomers apparacine, coronaridine and the dimers conodurine and gabunine showed significant cytotoxicity against P-388 lymphocytic leukaemia cell cultures. Conoduramine, conodurine and apparicine also showed moderate to strong antibacterial activity against several human pathogens, while apparicine also showed strong activity against type III poliovirus (HPV-3)[
299
Title
Protabase - Plant Resources of Tropical Africa.
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://www.prota.org
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
An excellent on-line database with detailed information on over 3,200 species of useful plants of Africa.
].
Several laboratory tests have shown that a hot water extract of the aerial parts had stronger local anaesthetic activity than procaine, which was primarily used in dentistry before more effective alternatives were developed[
299
Title
Protabase - Plant Resources of Tropical Africa.
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://www.prota.org
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
An excellent on-line database with detailed information on over 3,200 species of useful plants of Africa.
].
The ethanolic stem bark extract showed significant activity against gram-positive bacteria, while leaf extract showed significant activity against amoeba[
299
Title
Protabase - Plant Resources of Tropical Africa.
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://www.prota.org
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
An excellent on-line database with detailed information on over 3,200 species of useful plants of Africa.
].

The pulped leaves and latex from the stem and bark have several uses, the main ones being as a local anaesthetic, e.g. to treat dislocated bones or headache, for the treatment of wounds, sores, abscesses and furuncles, and to treat dermal infections such as filaria, ringworm and fungal infections[
299
Title
Protabase - Plant Resources of Tropical Africa.
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://www.prota.org
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
An excellent on-line database with detailed information on over 3,200 species of useful plants of Africa.
].

The latex is used as a haemostatic because it forms a film over the wound[
299
Title
Protabase - Plant Resources of Tropical Africa.
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://www.prota.org
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
An excellent on-line database with detailed information on over 3,200 species of useful plants of Africa.
]. It is taken internally as an anthelmintic[
299
Title
Protabase - Plant Resources of Tropical Africa.
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://www.prota.org
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
An excellent on-line database with detailed information on over 3,200 species of useful plants of Africa.
]. One to two drops are instilled in the nose to soothe headache, acting as a counter-irritant on the nasal mucosae. The latex is also used as a sedative to calm fits of insanity[
299
Title
Protabase - Plant Resources of Tropical Africa.
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://www.prota.org
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
An excellent on-line database with detailed information on over 3,200 species of useful plants of Africa.
]. A drop of latex of the twigs or roots is put in the eye to treat conjunctivitis or ophthalmia, in spite of its strongly caustic properties[
299
Title
Protabase - Plant Resources of Tropical Africa.
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://www.prota.org
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
An excellent on-line database with detailed information on over 3,200 species of useful plants of Africa.
]. Like many lactiferous plants, the latex is considered to be galactagogue[
299
Title
Protabase - Plant Resources of Tropical Africa.
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://www.prota.org
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
An excellent on-line database with detailed information on over 3,200 species of useful plants of Africa.
].

A decoction of the leaves is taken as a tonic, appetizer, febrifuge and aphrodisiac[
299
Title
Protabase - Plant Resources of Tropical Africa.
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://www.prota.org
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
An excellent on-line database with detailed information on over 3,200 species of useful plants of Africa.
].
Externally, it is used as a massage against rickets in children and to combat fatigue in adults[
299
Title
Protabase - Plant Resources of Tropical Africa.
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://www.prota.org
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
An excellent on-line database with detailed information on over 3,200 species of useful plants of Africa.
].

A bark decoction is given as enema to treat kidney troubles, rheumatism and persistent constipation[
299
Title
Protabase - Plant Resources of Tropical Africa.
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://www.prota.org
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
An excellent on-line database with detailed information on over 3,200 species of useful plants of Africa.
]. A root or stem bark decoction is used as nose drops to treat colds or sinusitis. A decoction of the stem bark is taken to treat diarrhoea[
299
Title
Protabase - Plant Resources of Tropical Africa.
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://www.prota.org
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
An excellent on-line database with detailed information on over 3,200 species of useful plants of Africa.
].

A decoction or maceration of the fruit is used as an enema to treat testicular swellings[
299
Title
Protabase - Plant Resources of Tropical Africa.
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://www.prota.org
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
An excellent on-line database with detailed information on over 3,200 species of useful plants of Africa.
].

Other Uses

Large leaves are woven into thatched roofs of houses in Gabon in the belief that their bitter taste keeps away cockroaches[
299
Title
Protabase - Plant Resources of Tropical Africa.
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://www.prota.org
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
An excellent on-line database with detailed information on over 3,200 species of useful plants of Africa.
].

The bark latex produces an inferior rubber that remains sticky and which has been used occasionally[
299
Title
Protabase - Plant Resources of Tropical Africa.
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://www.prota.org
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
An excellent on-line database with detailed information on over 3,200 species of useful plants of Africa.
].

The wood is yellowish white, moderately hard and easy to work, and it finishes smoothly. It is not resistant to fungal decay. It is suitable for general carpentry, plywood and boxboards. It is occasionally used in Liberia to make rice mortars[
299
Title
Protabase - Plant Resources of Tropical Africa.
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://www.prota.org
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
An excellent on-line database with detailed information on over 3,200 species of useful plants of Africa.
].

Propagation

Seed.
Semi-ripe cuttings.
Cite as: Tropical Plants Database, Ken Fern. tropical.theferns.info. 2024-03-28. <tropical.theferns.info/viewtropical.php?id=Tabernaemontana+crassa>

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