Croton aromaticus

Croton aromaticus L., Sp. Pl. 1005. 1753; Hook.f., Fl. Brit. India 5: 388. 1887; Chakrab. & N.P.Balakr. in Bull. Bot. Surv. India 26: 200. 1984. C. laccifer L., Sp. Pl. 1005. 1753 (as ‘lacciferum’); Gamble, Fl. Madras 2(7): 1315. 1925 (repr. ed. 2: 920. 1957) as per efi thread;

Shrubs, branchlets stellate, brown tomentose. Leaves to 12 x 6 cm, ovate, acuminate, cordate at base, 3-ribbed from base, glands 2 pairs; upper leaves with acute base; petiole 2-3 cm long. Racemes 10 cm long, solitary or paired, densely stellate hairy; female flower 7 mm across; sepals ovate, acute; petals obovate, ciliate; styles 3, each dichotomously divided, glabrous. Male flowers many, similar to female flowers; stamens 20, filaments bearded. capsule 1 cm across, globose, densely stellate hairy.

Flowering and fruiting: April-August

Shola forests bordering grasslands and semi-evergreen forests

India and Sri Lanka

(From India Biodiversity Portal

Attributions- Dr. N Sasidharan (Dr. B P Pal Fellow), Kerala Forest Research Institute, Peechi)

Euphorbiaceae Fortnight :: Croton for ID :: MK005 : Attachments (7). 6 posts by 3 authors.

Please help me in identifying this Croton tree.

I could see this more commonly along the edges of evergreen forests in Nilgiris.

Leaf: up to 20 cm long

Small tree of size up to 6 metre

Date: 18 Aug 2013

Place: Kothagiri RF, Nilgiris, TN

Alt.: 1900 m asl

Croton aromaticus.

Is Croton laccifer L. a synonym for C.aromaticus?

Yes, Croton laccifer L. is a synonym of C. aromaticus L.

Euphorbiaceae Fortnight :: Croton for ID :: MK005 : Attachments (7). 9 posts by 4 authors.

Please help me in identifying this Croton tree. I could see this more commonly along the edges of evergreen forests in Nilgiris.

Leaf: up to 20 cm long

Small tree of size up to 6 metre

Date: 18 Aug 2013

Place: Kothagiri RF, Nilgiris, TN

Alt.: 1900 m asl

Croton aromaticus

Is Croton laccifer L. a synonym for C.aromaticus?

Yes, Croton laccifer L. is a synonym of C. aromaticus L.

Links available at net on search seems at variance from your observations:

The Plant List MMPND India Biodiversity Portal

We combined Croton laccifer L. with C. aromaticus L. perhaps in 1981.

As the dates of publication of both the species are same, we chose the name Croton aromaticus for the combined species.
Croton aromaticus L., Sp. Pl. 1005. 1753; Hook.f., Fl. Brit. India 5: 388. 1887; Chakrab. & N.P.Balakr. in Bull. Bot. Surv. India 26: 200. 1984. C. laccifer L., Sp. Pl. 1005. 1753 (as ‘lacciferum’); Gamble, Fl. Madras 2(7): 1315. 1925 (repr. ed. 2: 920. 1957).

Flora of Munnar :: FOR ID :: Croton ¿ malabaricus ? :: DV03AUG : 15 posts by 3 authors.

Munnar

Date: June 3 – 6, 2014 … Elevation: around 1600m asl

Croton ¿ malabaricus ?

Dear friends, please help with ID.
Moderate sized tree bearing male and female flowers spikes; fallen male flower measuring about 3 – 4 mm across.
Found along NH 49 near Chinnakanal, Munnar.
At facebook, suggested ID to genus level is Croton; could it be C. malabaricus ?

fallen male flower

male flowers
female flowers spike
the left among the two

Yes please. Excellent photos. It is an endemic species.

The photos look like an admixture. The last photos in particular with cordate leaf base belong to something very different. Croton malabaricus never has such cordate leaf base.

Thank you very much … for re-validating the ID (of not being C. malabaricus).

The last picture shows mix of plants; I should have specifically mentioned that it is for showing the tree trunk. The branches, leaves could be a mix of adjacent tree(s).

Since I do not find presence of glands at the junction of lamina and petiole, I am hesitant to think of C. laccifer OR C. aromaticus.

Hoping we reach an ID with posted photos.

the plant is identified C.lacciferus

Many thanks … for resurfacing the query.

Thanks very very much Ramachandran ji for the ID.

I am keen to know the author citation for Croton lacciferus

… whether
1) Croton lacciferus L. … synonym of Croton aromaticus L.

2) Croton lacciferus Blanco … synonym of Macaranga tanarius (L.) Müll.Arg.

I could find the following only (No Croton lacciferus L.):

Croton lacciferus Blanco

Croton laccifer L.

Croton laccifer Blanco

I had seen this page in A Dictionary of the Economic Products of India, Volume 2.

Relevant words are obscured on seeing.

Not sure I understood your point … Attaching a screenshot of what I see on the page …

Thanks, … But I think this is a 19th century book.

Agreed … I found in this text … Croton lacciferus L. as synonym of Croton aromaticus L.
Croton lacciferus Blanco is synonym of Macaranga tanarius (L.) Müll.Arg. at The Plants List … does not seem to be distributed in India, and has peltate leaves.

Croton lacciferus L. (= Croton aromaticus L.) has 2 pair of glands at the junction of lamina and petiole beneath, which I cannot see in my posted pictures.

…, please let me correct myself – that the poor quality of photos may not be showing the glands clearly.