''Euphorbia grantii'' is a species of
succulent plant in the family
Euphorbiaceae
Euphorbiaceae, the spurge family, is a large family of flowering plants. In English, they are also commonly called euphorbias, which is also the name of a genus in the family. Most spurges, such as '' Euphorbia paralias'', are herbs, but some, ...
.
Name
The
specific epithet is in honour of explorer
James Augustus Grant
Lieutenant-Colonel James Augustus Grant (11 April 1827 – 11 February 1892) was a Scottish explorer of eastern equatorial Africa. He made contributions to the journals of various learned societies, the most notable being the "Botany of the Sp ...
.
[Oliver, Daniel. 1875. ''Transactions of the Linnean Society of London'', 29(3): 144.] It was originally described by
Daniel Oliver in 1875.
The plant has the
common name of African milk bush.
The synonym ''Synadenium grantii'' is in circulation, too.
Distribution
The plant is native in the African tropics, in particular in Malawi, Kenya and Uganda.
It grows at altitudes of 500–2100 meters. It has been introduced in many other tropical regions.
Usage
It is often grown as a hedge plant and as a traditional grave marker among the peoples of central
Kenya
)
, national_anthem = " Ee Mungu Nguvu Yetu"()
, image_map =
, map_caption =
, image_map2 =
, capital = Nairobi
, coordinates =
, largest_city = Nairobi
...
(
Agĩkũyũ,
Akamba, etc.).
[(Book) Trees of Kenya, by Tim C. Noad and Ann Birnie, p.109, Self-Published in Nairobi, Kenya 1989]
In 1952 during the
Mau Mau Uprising, the poisonous
latex
Latex is an emulsion (stable dispersion) of polymer microparticles in water. Latexes are found in nature, but synthetic latexes are common as well.
In nature, latex is found as a milky fluid found in 10% of all flowering plants (angiosperms ...
of the plant was used to kill
cattle
Cattle (''Bos taurus'') are large, domesticated, cloven-hooved, herbivores. They are a prominent modern member of the subfamily Bovinae and the most widespread species of the genus ''Bos''. Adult females are referred to as cows and adult ma ...
.
[
]
Gallery
File:African Milk Bush (1657066693).jpg
File:Synadenium grantii 2015-06-01 OB 174.jpg
File:Starr-090609-0392-Synadenium grantii-cv Rubra leaves-Plants Alive Haiku-Maui (24870017261).jpg
File:Starr-090609-0393-Synadenium grantii-cv Rubra leaves-Plants Alive Haiku-Maui (24870019121).jpg
File:Synadenium grantii 1zz.jpg
File:Synadeniumflor 03.JPG
File:Synadenium grantii (1657100539).jpg
References
External links
*
grantii
Plants described in 1875
Taxa named by Daniel Oliver
{{Euphorbia-stub