Bastard ipecacuana (Asclepias curassavica, Sp. Pl.: 215 (1753))

Family: Apocynaceae

Author: L.

Bibliography: Sp. Pl.: 215 (1753)

Year: 1753

Status: accepted

Rank: species

Genus: Asclepias

Vegetable: Unknown

Observations: Mexico to Trop. America

Description

Bastard ipecacuana is a striking and vibrant plant known for its distinctive appearance and medicinal properties. Scientifically referred to as Asclepias curassavica, this species was first described in the renowned work “Species Plantarum” by the illustrious botanist Carl Linnaeus in 1753.

This perennial herb is widely distributed from Mexico to Tropical America, flourishing in a variety of habitats within these regions. A member of the Apocynaceae family, Bastard ipecacuana is easily recognized by its eye-catching blooms, which present a striking palette of red and yellow hues that attract attention from both humans and pollinators alike.

The plant typically grows to a height of 1 to 2 feet and possesses lance-shaped leaves that are arranged oppositely on the stem. The flower clusters, or umbels, emerge from the leaf axils, giving rise to vibrant, tubular blossoms that provide a nectar-rich source for butterflies, particularly the Monarch butterfly, making it a valuable component of butterfly gardens and ecological conservation efforts.

In addition to its ornamental value, Bastard ipecacuana has a historical significance in traditional medicine. Indigenous cultures within its native range have utilized various parts of the plant to address a variety of ailments. However, caution is advised, as the plant contains cardiac glycosides, which can be toxic if ingested in large quantities.

While it serves a medicinal purpose and provides ecological benefits, the plant must be handled with care due to its potentially toxic nature. This dual characteristic underscores the complex relationship between humans, plants, and the environment, highlighting the importance of respecting and understanding local wildlife and flora.

Overall, Bastard ipecacuana’s vibrant beauty and historical significance make it a notable species within the Apocynaceae family, illustrating the rich biodiversity found from Mexico to Tropical America.

Common Names

Eng: bloodflower, madagascar cottonbush, west indian ipecacuana, wild ipecac, bastard ipecacuana, bastard-ipecac, bloodflower milkweed, cottonbush, false ipecac, hierba de la cucaracha, milky cottonbush, red milkweed, red-cotton, redhead, redhead cottonbush, scarlet milkweed, swallowwort, wallflower cottonbush, wild ipecacuanha, wild oleander, ipecacuanha, ipecacuanha hippety- iguana, ipecacuanha hippetyiguana, tropical milkweed, blood-flower, butterfly weed, milkweed
Deu: curacao-seidenpflanze, indianer-seidenpflanze
Ita: pianta dei pappagallini
Spa: yerba de mariposas, algodoncillo, calentura, corcalito, flor de la bandera española, flor de la seda, flor de sangre, turbinto, viborán, yuquillo
Fra: asclepias de curaçao, herbe à sang, ipéca sauvage
Por: asclépias, cega-olho, chibança, flor-de-sangue, margarida, oficial-da-sala, oficial-de-sala, paina-de-sapo, pitchula-de-leite, planta-da-seda
Swe: röd sidenört
En: Bastard ipecacuana, Cottonbush, Red milkweed, Scarlet milkweed, Milky cottonbush, Bastard-ipecac, Madagascar cottonbush, West Indian ipecacuana, Wallflower cottonbush, False ipecac, Red-cotton, Redhead, Redhead cottonbush, Wild ipecac, Wild oleander, Swallowwort, Bloodflower, Bloodflower milkweed, Tropical Milkweed, Hierba de la cucaracha, Wild ipecacuanha, Ipecacuanha, Ipecacuanha Hippety- iguana, Ipecacuanha Hippetyiguana, Blood-flower, Butterfly weed, Milkweed, Bastard Ipecac, Blood Flower, Red-head plant, Silkweed
Ar: تفله تركي
Bn: মরিচা ফুল
Bg: Копринено растение
Zh: Ma li jin, 马利筋
Cs: Klejicha kurasavská
Da: Rav-Silkeplante
Nl: Frederiksbloem, Amerikaanse Zijdeplant, Bloedbloem, Rode Zijdeplant
Fi: Punasilkkiyrtti
Fr: Asclepias de Curaçao, Herbe à sang, Ipéca sauvage, Asclépiade de Curaçao, Faux Ipéca, Herbe à gendarme, Codio, Crodio, Cadrio, Ipeca nègre, Herbe à chenilles
De: Indianer-Seidenpflanze, Curacao-Seidenpflanze
Ht: Zèb papiyon
Hu: Selyembokor
It: Pianta dei pappagallini
Ko: 금관화
Ml: ചെമ്മുള്ളി
Pt: Oficial-de-sala, Paina-de-sapo, Pitchula-de-leite, Cega-olho, Chibança, Margarida, Asclépias, Flor-de-sangue, Oficial-da-sala, Planta-da-seda
Pt-br: Algodãozinho-do-campo, Camará-bravo, Capitão-de-sala, Cega-olho, Oficial-de-sala, Paina-de-sapo, Paininha, Erva-de-paina
Es: Algodoncillo, Corcalito, Yuquillo, Flor de sangre, Viborana., Yerba de mariposas, Calentura, Flor de la bandera española, Flor de la seda, Turbinto, Viborán, Bencenuco, Cancerillo, Bailarina, Leche Vaca, Maragasá, Matacaballo, Señorita, Viborana
Sv: Röd sidenört
Zh-tw: 尖尾鳳, 馬利筋
Te: జిల్లేడు మందార
Th: ไฟเดือนห้า
To: Tuʻulapepe
Zh-hant: 馬利筋

Synonyms

• Asclepias cubensis (Wender.)
• Asclepias curassavica f. kentingensis (F.C.Ho)
• Asclepias margaritacea (Hoffmanns. ex Schult.)
• Asclepias bicolor (Moench)
• Asclepias nivea var. curassavica ((L.) Kuntze)
• Asclepias curassavica f. flaviflora (Tawada)
• Asclepias curassavica var. concolor (Krug & Urb.)
• Asclepias aurantiaca (Salisb.)
• Asclepias curassavica f. pallidiflora (Griseb.)

Distribution

• Bahamas (native)
• Belize (native)
• Bolivia (native)
• Brazil North (native)
• Brazil Northeast (native)
• Brazil South (native)
• Brazil Southeast (native)
• Brazil West-Central (native)
• Cayman Is. (native)
• Colombia (native)
• Costa Rica (native)
• Cuba (native)
• Dominican Republic (native)
• Ecuador (native)
• El Salvador (native)
• French Guiana (native)
• Galápagos (native)
• Guatemala (native)
• Guyana (native)
• Haiti (native)
• Honduras (native)
• Jamaica (native)
• Leeward Is. (native)
• Mexico Central (native)
• Mexico Gulf (native)
• Mexico Northeast (native)
• Mexico Northwest (native)
• Mexico Southeast (native)
• Mexico Southwest (native)
• Netherlands Antilles (native)
• Nicaragua (native)
• Panamá (native)
• Peru (native)
• Puerto Rico (native)
• Southwest Caribbean (native)
• Suriname (native)
• Trinidad-Tobago (native)
• Turks-Caicos Is. (native)
• Venezuela (native)
• Venezuelan Antilles (native)
• Windward Is. (native)
• Andaman Is. (introduced)
• Angola (introduced)
• Argentina Northeast (introduced)
• Argentina Northwest (introduced)
• Ascension (introduced)
• Assam (introduced)
• Bangladesh (introduced)
• Bermuda (introduced)
• Bismarck Archipelago (introduced)
• Borneo (introduced)
• Burkina (introduced)
• California (introduced)
• Cambodia (introduced)
• Canary Is. (introduced)
• Cape Provinces (introduced)
• Cape Verde (introduced)
• Caroline Is. (introduced)
• Chagos Archipelago (introduced)
• Chile North (introduced)
• China South-Central (introduced)
• China Southeast (introduced)
• Comoros (introduced)
• Congo (introduced)
• Cook Is. (introduced)
• Cyprus (introduced)
• East Aegean Is. (introduced)
• East Himalaya (introduced)
• Fiji (introduced)
• Florida (introduced)
• Gabon (introduced)
• Ghana (introduced)
• Gilbert Is. (introduced)
• Greece (introduced)
• Guinea (introduced)
• Gulf of Guinea Is. (introduced)
• Hainan (introduced)
• Hawaii (introduced)
• India (introduced)
• Iraq (introduced)
• Japan (introduced)
• Jawa (introduced)
• Kenya (introduced)
• Kriti (introduced)
• KwaZulu-Natal (introduced)
• Laos (introduced)
• Lesser Sunda Is. (introduced)
• Line Is. (introduced)
• Louisiana (introduced)
• Madeira (introduced)
• Malawi (introduced)
• Malaya (introduced)
• Marianas (introduced)
• Marquesas (introduced)
• Marshall Is. (introduced)
• Mauritius (introduced)
• Morocco (introduced)
• Mozambique (introduced)
• Myanmar (introduced)
• Nansei-shoto (introduced)
• Nauru (introduced)
• Nepal (introduced)
• New Caledonia (introduced)
• New South Wales (introduced)
• Nigeria (introduced)
• Northern Provinces (introduced)
• Paraguay (introduced)
• Philippines (introduced)
• Queensland (introduced)
• Rwanda (introduced)
• Réunion (introduced)
• Samoa (introduced)
• Senegal (introduced)
• Seychelles (introduced)
• Sierra Leone (introduced)
• Society Is. (introduced)
• Solomon Is. (introduced)
• South Australia (introduced)
• Spain (introduced)
• Sri Lanka (introduced)
• Taiwan (introduced)
• Tanzania (introduced)
• Tennessee (introduced)
• Texas (introduced)
• Thailand (introduced)
• Tibet (introduced)
• Tonga (introduced)
• Tuamotu (introduced)
• Tubuai Is. (introduced)
• Uganda (introduced)
• Vanuatu (introduced)
• Vietnam (introduced)
• Wallis-Futuna Is. (introduced)
• West Himalaya (introduced)
• Western Australia (introduced)
• Zaïre (introduced)
• Zimbabwe (introduced)

Additional Images

© copyright of the Board of Trustees of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew.

© copyright of the Board of Trustees of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew.

© copyright of the Board of Trustees of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew.

Fruit

Taken Jan 25, 2020 by Dieter Wagner (cc-by-sa)

Taken Nov 26, 2019 by Dieter Wagner (cc-by-sa)

Taken Nov 26, 2019 by Dieter Wagner (cc-by-sa)

Taken Nov 26, 2019 by Dieter Wagner (cc-by-sa)

Taken Jan 13, 2020 by Dieter Wagner (cc-by-sa)

Habit

Taken Oct 28, 2020 by Dieter Wagner (cc-by-sa)

Taken Oct 20, 2019 by Dieter Wagner (cc-by-sa)

Taken Nov 29, 2019 by Dieter Wagner (cc-by-sa)

Taken Oct 20, 2019 by Dieter Wagner (cc-by-sa)

Taken Nov 26, 2019 by Dieter Wagner (cc-by-sa)

Flower

Taken Dec 16, 2017 by vini (cc-by-sa)

Taken Apr 14, 2018 by Miryan Pires Miryan Pires (cc-by-sa)

Taken Mar 23, 2018 by christiane Fazer (cc-by-sa)

Taken Oct 12, 2018 by vini (cc-by-sa)

Taken Feb 20, 2019 by Fernando Ruiz (cc-by-sa)

Leaf

Taken Nov 20, 2021 by ??? 囧 (cc-by-sa)

Taken Jan 7, 2022 by Kelley Clark (cc-by-sa)

Taken Oct 1, 2022 by Walter Diaz (cc-by-sa)

Taken Oct 1, 2022 by Walter Diaz (cc-by-sa)

Taken Feb 27, 2018 by Dieter Wagner (cc-by-sa)

Other

Taken Jul 2, 2022 by Antoine Patraldo (cc-by-sa)

Taken May 26, 2021 by Trap Hers (cc-by-sa)

Taken Dec 26, 2008 by Tela Botanica − Liliane Roubaudi (cc-by-sa)

Taken Feb 1, 2014 by Tela Botanica − Liliane Roubaudi (cc-by-sa)

Taken Oct 4, 2012 by Tela Botanica − Gérard Calbérac (cc-by-sa)

Bark

Taken Apr 17, 2019 by OTS – O. Vargas (cc-by-nc-sa)

Taken Dec 9, 2020 by peter.banksii (cc-by-sa)

Taken Sep 25, 2013 by EOL − Jon Sullivan (cc-by-nc)

Taken Feb 23, 2013 by Tela Botanica − Yoan MARTIN (cc-by-sa)

Taken Aug 7, 2019 by Marcelo Vega (cc-by-sa)

Sources

• WFO (No URL)
• IPNI (No URL)
• GBIF (https://www.gbif.org/species/3170241)
• POWO (http://powo.science.kew.org/taxon/urn:lsid:ipni.org:names:94213-1)
• PlantNet (https://identify.plantnet.org/species/the-plant-list/Asclepias curassavica L.)

Specifications

Growth