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Aspidosperma tomentosum
Apocynaceae FAMILY

Aspidosperma tomentosum

Aspidosperma tomentosum

Edibility
0/5
Medicinal
0/5

Safety & Hazards

The freshly cut wood and sap of Aspidosperma species causes irritation of the eyes, nose, and throat, with general malaise[1]. The sawdust, on contact with abraded skin, produces local burning and a vesicular eruption with general symptoms of muscular weakness and cramps, sweating, dryness of the mouth, and faintness[1]. Once the wood is thoroughly dry it loses its toxicity unless polishes or dyes in organic solvents are used on it[1]

Cultivation Details

HabitSemi-deciduous Tree
GrowthSlow

Prefers a sunny position[2]. Established plants are drought tolerant[2]. A slow-growing tree[2]. The plants thick, corky bark almost certainly acts as a protection from fires[PFAF].

Propagation

Seed - best sown as soon as it is ripe in a sunny position in a nursery seedbed. A germination rate in excess of 50% can be expected, with the seeds sprouting within 15 - 25 days[2]. Pot up the seedlings into individual containers when they are 4- 6cm tall, and they should be ready to plant out 8 - 10 months later[2]. Cite as: Tropical Plants Database, Ken Fern. tropical.theferns.info. 2026-02-19. <tropical.theferns.info/viewtropical.php?id=Aspidosperma+tomentosum>

Pollinators

Insects

References

  1. [1]BoDD (Botanical Dermatology Database) — http://bodd.cf.ac.uk/ ↩︎Brief notes on a very wide range of plants that have reports of causing harm to the skin.
  2. [2]Brazilian Trees. Volume 2. 4th Edition. — Lorenzi. H. · Instituto Plantarum De Estudos Da Flora; Brazil. · 2002 · ISBN 85-86714-15-1 ↩︎Information on 350 species of Brazilian trees. Stunning photographs of each species, brief details on the plant, its uses and how to grow it from seed. A superb work, with the minor irritation that the translation from Portuguese is not of the best.
  3. [3]Annals of the Missouri Botanical Garden Vol. 38 — Missouri Botanical Garden · 1951 ↩︎An excellent botanical publication, available for download from the Internet. This volume contains part of the Flora of Panama and a revision of the genus Aspidosperma, amongst other things.
  4. [4]Dictionary of Economic Plants. — Uphof. J. C. Th. · Weinheim · 1959 · ISBN - ↩︎An excellent and very comprehensive guide but it only gives very short descriptions of the uses without any details of how to utilize the plants. Not for the casual reader.
  5. [PFAF]Plants for a Future — pfaf.org ↩︎