Tabernaemontana
Genus of plants / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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Tabernaemontana is a genus of flowering plants in the family Apocynaceae. It has a pan-tropical distribution, found in Asia, Africa, Australia, North America, South America, and a wide assortment of oceanic islands.[1][2] These plants are evergreen shrubs and small trees growing to 1–15 m tall. The leaves are opposite, 3–25 cm long, with milky sap; hence it is one of the diverse plant genera commonly called "milkwood". The flowers are fragrant, white, 1–5 cm in diameter.
Tabernaemontana | |
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Tabernaemontana divaricata 'Flore Pleno' | |
Scientific classification | |
Kingdom: | Plantae |
Clade: | Tracheophytes |
Clade: | Angiosperms |
Clade: | Eudicots |
Clade: | Asterids |
Order: | Gentianales |
Family: | Apocynaceae |
Subfamily: | Rauvolfioideae |
Tribe: | Tabernaemontaneae |
Subtribe: | Tabernaemontaninae |
Genus: | Tabernaemontana Plum. ex L. 1753 |
Synonyms[1] | |
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The cultivar T. divaricata cv. 'Plena', with doubled-petaled flowers, is a popular houseplant.
Some members of the genus Tabernaemontana are used as additives to some versions of the psychedelic drink ayahuasca;[3] the genus is known to contain ibogaine (e.g. in bëcchëte, T. undulata), conolidine (present in minor concentration in T. divaricata)[4] and voacangine (T. alba, T. arborea, T. africana).[5] Because of presence of coronaridine and voacangine in Mexican Tabernaemontana species,[5] those plant could be used in economic production of anti-addictive alkaloids especially ibogaine and ibogamine.[6] T. sananho preparations are used in native medicine to treat eye injuries and as an anxiolytic, and T. heterophylla is used to treat dementia in the elderly.[7] Conolidine may be developed as a new class of pain killer.[8] Caterpillars of the oleander hawk-moth (Daphnis nerii) have been found to feed on the pinwheelflower (T. divaricata).