Croton megalocarpus

Croton megalocarpus

Croton megalocarpus

Origin: Indigenous

Indigenous to Kenya, Croton megalocarpus is a spreading deciduous tree reaching up to 35 m in height, featuring distinctive layered branches and a flat crown providing light shade. Its bark is dark grey, rough, and prone to cracking. Leaves are variable, typically long oval and pointed up to 12 cm, with a dull green upper surface and a pale, silvery underside. The tree produces monoecious or dioecious flowers, short-lived but conspicuous, blooming into pale yellow hanging spikes up to 25 cm long, with few female flowers at the base. The fruit consists of numerous grey woody capsules, approximately 25 cm long, containing three flattened seeds inside, turning grey-brown when mature with a small bump (the caruncle).

Uses: Croton megalocarpus serves various purposes including firewood (note: smoke may irritate eyes), timber, charcoal, poles, medicinal use (bark), forage, shade, ornamental, mulch, live fence, and boundary marking, particularly among the Kikuyu community. It’s also utilized in veterinary medicine.

Notes: The seeds contain high oil (30%) and protein content (50%), with the oil extract serving as a potent purgative. Due to competition and shade, it’s not recommended for intercropping. Cultural beliefs discourage planting it near residences. Additionally, smoke from burning the wood may irritate eyes, and the heartwood emits a foul odor, while the sap has a spicy scent.

Also see Croton macrostachyus