TopTropicals Plant Catalog

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Aleurites moluccana, Aleurites triloba, Croton moluccanus Family: Euphorbiaceae Candlenut oil tree, Candleberry, Varnish tree, Indian or Belgaum walnut Origin: Malaysia, Polynesia, Malay Peninsula, Philippines and South Seas Islands The Aleurites moluccana is a medium to large sized tree, that reaches up to 60 feet tall, an ornamental tree, with widespreading or pendulous branches. It leaves a simple, variable shape, young leaves are large, up to 12" long. The A. moluccana is palmate, shiny, while leaves on mature trees are ovate, entire, and acuminate. There is a whitish substance above them when young, that becomes green with age, with rusty stellate pubescence beneath when young, and perisiting on veins. Small flowers in rusty-pubescent panicled cymes, dingy white or creamy. Fruit an indehiscent drupe, roundish, 2" or more in diameter, with thick rough hard shell making up 64–68 percent of fruit, difficult to separate from kernels; containing 1 or 2 seeds. Bears two heavy crops each year, harvested when mature. Kernels adhere to sides of shell and are difficult to separate. The oil dries quicker than linseed oil, is used as a wood preservative for varnishes and oil paint, as an illuminant for soap making, waterproofing paper, rubber substitutes and insulating material. Seeds are moderately poisonous and press cake is used as fertilizer. Kernels when roasted and cooked are considered edible; may be strung as candlenuts. Oil is painted on bottoms of small crafts to protect against marine borers. Tung oil, applied to cotton bolls, stops boil weevils from eating them. Also prevents feeding by striped cucumber beetle. Bark used on tumors in Japan. The oil is purgative and sometimes used like castor oil. Kernels are laxative stimulant, and sudorific. The irritant oil is rubbed on scalp as a hair stimulant. In Sumatra, pounded seeds, burned with charcoal,are applied around the navel forcositiveness. In Malaya, the pulped kernel enters poultices for headache, fevers, ulcers, and swollen joints. In Java, the bark is used for bloody diarrhea or dysentery. Bark juice with coconut milk is used for sprue. Malayans apply boiled leaves to the temples for headache. Link to this plant: http://toptropicals.com/catalog/uid/aleurites_moluccana.htm

Ovate leaves

Simple-Palmate leaves