Euphorbia grantii explained

Euphorbia grantii (syn.) Synadenium grantii) is a species of succulent plant in the family Euphorbiaceae, which is native to Africa.

Name

The specific epithet grantii is in honour of the Scottish explorer James Augustus Grant.^[1] 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.^[2] 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 (Agĩkũyũ, Akamba, etc.).^[3]

In 1952 during the Mau Mau Uprising, the poisonous latex of the plant was used to kill cattle.^[4]

Notes and References

1. Oliver, Daniel. 1875. Transactions of the Linnean Society of London, 29(3): 144.
2. Synadenium grantii Hook.f., The Encyclopedia of Succulents. http://www.llifle.com/Encyclopedia/SUCCULENTS/Family/Euphorbiaceae/23048/Synadenium_grantii
3. (Book) Trees of Kenya, by Tim C. Noad and Ann Birnie, p.109, Self-Published in Nairobi, Kenya 1989
4. Book: Bernard Verdourt, E.C. Trump and M.E. Church . Common poisonous plants of East Africa . Collins . 1969 . London . 254 .