Rauvolfia vomitoria
Rauvolfia vomitoria
Safety & Hazards
The roots, either alone or combined with the seeds of Strophanthus gratus, are pounded to a paste and used as an arrow poison[ 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. ]. In DR Congo the roots are a common additive to Periploca nigrescens for use as a hunting poison[ 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. ]. In Equatorial Guinea the root scrapings are mixed with cassava meal and put in bait for use as a rat poison[ 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 Description
Rauvolfia vomitoria is a shrub or a tree that varies widely in height; it usually grows from 0.5 - 20 metres tall, though specimens up to 40 metres have been recorded. The bole is up to 80 cm in diameter[ 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. , 610 Title Flora of Tropical East Africa Publication Author Beentje H.J. Website http://plants.jstor.org/search?st=396814 Publisher Royal Botanic Gardens; Kew. Year 2002 ISBN Description Available on-line, a modern flora of East Africa. ]. The tree is harvested from the wild for local use as a medicine and source of materials. It is commonly harvested from the wild and exported to places such as Europe as a source of compounds, especially reserpine, for the pharmaceutical industry[ 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 Indian species Rauvolfia serpentina was formerly the main source of reserpine, but has been replaced to a large extent by Rauvolfia vomitoria. The plant is often grown as a shade tree and hedge in plantations and is cultivated in many parts of the tropics and subtropics as an ornamental and avenue tree[ 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. , 303 Title World Agroforesty Centre Publication Author Website http://www.worldagroforestry.org/ Publisher Year 0 ISBN Description An excellent online database of a huge range of trees giving very good information on each plant - its uses, ecology, identity, propagation, pests etc. ]. This species has not yet been assessed in the IUCN List of Endangered Plant Species(2013). Although it has a wide distribution area and is often common, it is possibly endangered in several countries, such as Ghana, due to overharvesting[ 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. ].