15 centimetres across
caudex.
Female
flower and male buds.
Some male
flowers. The females are in the centre, and flower first.
A 150 centimetre high
plant.
The seedpods dry out
and pops.
The seeds can be found five meters away.
The seeds. Grit 5mm.
Seedling from a Nicaraguan seed.
- and after 3 months. Caudex like
a finger, getting the first adult leaf. Flowers the first year. |
| Author: |
William Jackson Hooker, 1848 |
| Family: |
EUPHORBIACEAE |
| Origin: |
El
Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico, Nicaragua |
| Soil: |
Rich -
Grit |
| Water:
|
Medium |
| Sun: |
Medium
- Maximum |
| Thickness: |
20
Centimetres |
| Height: |
40-200 Centimetres |
| Flower:
|
Red |
| Propagate: |
Seeds/(Cuttings) |
| Names:
|
Purging
Nut |
| Synonyms: |
- |
This member of the Euphorbiaceae family was first described by
William Jackson Hooker in 1848. It's found in central America. It
preferring good rich soil, but can grow in grit. It need some water
and some to lots of sun. The caudex will grow up to 20 centimetres
in diameter, the stems to two meters - or even
higher in culture. The flowers
are red, the female flower starts, but it can self-pollinate. Apparently,
it's not possible to make cuttings forming a caudex.
First, the centred female
flowers will open, then the many surrounding male flowers. It can self
fertilize. The seedpods will pop when ripen, throwing the two to six
seeds several metres away. Can be sown right away, and within a week,
100% will grow - for me.
The genera name from the Greek
words ἰατρός; iatros, meaning 'physician', and τροφή;
trophe meaning 'nutrition', as to medicinal uses. The species name means 'suffering
from podagra (gout)' as the stem is swollen.
|
