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Accession Data:

Ricinus communis L.

  • Common Name: Castor Bean Plant
  • Family: Euphorbiaceae Juss.

  • Country of Origin: northeast Africa

  • Uses: Seeds are the source of castor oil.

    • IMPORTANT NOTE: Plant Uses are for informational purposes only. EEB Greenhouses assume no responsibility for adverse effects from the use of any plants referred to on this site. Always seek advice from a professional before using any plant medicinally.

Accession Data:

  • Accession # 200900089
  • Source: Thompson & Morgan 2009 (seed)
  • Accession Date: 11-30-2009
  • Bench: 1115 - AFR:East Bench SS
    • Currently: active - healthy
    • Qty: 2 confirmed on 04-07-2025
  • Restrictions:
    • Poisonous Plant Parts - Not for Human Consumption
      Commercially available cold-pressed castor oil is not toxic to humans in normal doses, either internal or externally. The toxicity of raw castor beans is due to the presence of ricin. 3

Classification:

  • Division: Magnoliophyta
  • Class: Magnoliopsida
  • SubClass: eurosid I
  • Order: Malpighiales
  • SubOrder:
  • Family: Euphorbiaceae
  • SubFamily: Acalyphoideae
  • Tribe: Acalypheae
  • SubTribe: Ricininae

Flowering Data:

This accession has been observed in bloom on:
YearJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
2025
2024
2023
2022
2021
2020
2019
2018
2017
2016
2015
2014
2013
2012
2011
2010

References (internal):

  • Plants with Extrafloral Nectaries
  • EEB 3271 - Systematic Botany
  • Medicinal Plants
  • Medicinal Plants - Traditional African Medicine
  • EEB Greenhouse Holdings native to: Ethiopia / Somalia / Kenya /

References (external):

  1. The Plant List (2013). Version 1.1. Accessed 8 June 2015.
  2. WCSP (2015). World Checklist of Selected Plant Families. Facilitated by the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Accessed 8 June 2015.
  3. Ricinus at Wikipedia. Last accessed on Tuesday, November 14, 2017.
  4. Image #00 (cropped) & #01 (original) by Alvesgaspar (Own work) [CC BY-SA 3.0 or GFDL], via Wikimedia Commons. Last accessed on Tuesday, November 14, 2017.

data regenerated on Mon, 07 Apr 2025 08:21:11 -0400 [bcm v4.0]

Images:

Ricinus communis

Additional images for this accession:

Click on thumbnails to enlarge

Current Accessions in the Euphorbiaceae

Subfamily Acalyphoideae
Tribe Acalypheae

  • Acalyphinae: Acalypha chamaedrifolia
  • Acalyphinae: Acalypha hispida
  • Acalyphinae: Acalypha wilkesiana `Macafeana'
  • Ricininae: Ricinus communis

Subfamily Acalyphoideae
Tribe Plukenetieae

  • Dalechampiinae: Dalechampia spathulata

Subfamily Crotonoideae
Tribe Aleuritideae

  • Aleuritinae: Aleurites moluccanus
  • Garciinae: Garcia nutans

Subfamily Crotonoideae
Tribe Codiaeae

  • Codiaeum variegatum

Subfamily Crotonoideae
Tribe Crotoneae

  • Croton congestus

Subfamily Crotonoideae
Tribe Jatropheae

  • Jatropha cathartica
  • Jatropha curcas
  • Jatropha mcvaughii
  • Jatropha multifida
  • Jatropha podagrica

Subfamily Crotonoideae
Tribe Manihoteae

  • Cnidoscolus aconitifolius
  • Manihot esculenta
  • Manihot grahamii

Subfamily Crotonoideae
Tribe Micrandreae

  • Heveinae: Hevea brasiliensis

Subfamily Euphorbioideae
Tribe Euphorbieae

  • Euphorbiinae: Euphorbia abyssinica
  • Euphorbiinae: Euphorbia aeruginosa
  • Euphorbiinae: Euphorbia alluaudii ssp. oncoclada
  • Euphorbiinae: Euphorbia antiquorum
  • Euphorbiinae: Euphorbia antisyphilitica
  • Euphorbiinae: Euphorbia baioensis
  • Euphorbiinae: Euphorbia beharensis var. guillemetii
  • Euphorbiinae: Euphorbia bicompacta
  • Euphorbiinae: Euphorbia bicompacta var. rubra
  • Euphorbiinae: Euphorbia bupleurifolia
  • Euphorbiinae: Euphorbia bupleurifolia x susannae
  • Euphorbiinae: Euphorbia caerulescens
  • Euphorbiinae: Euphorbia canariensis
  • Euphorbiinae: Euphorbia caput-medusae
  • Euphorbiinae: Euphorbia clandestina
  • Euphorbiinae: Euphorbia croizatii
  • Euphorbiinae: Euphorbia cylindrifolia
  • Euphorbiinae: Euphorbia decaryi
  • Euphorbiinae: Euphorbia didiereoides
  • Euphorbiinae: Euphorbia enterophora
  • Euphorbiinae: Euphorbia francoisii
  • Euphorbiinae: Euphorbia globosa W/C
  • Euphorbiinae: Euphorbia greenwayi var. greenwayi
  • Euphorbiinae: Euphorbia guiengola
  • Euphorbiinae: Euphorbia knuthii
  • Euphorbiinae: Euphorbia lactea
  • Euphorbiinae: Euphorbia leuconeura
  • Euphorbiinae: Euphorbia lomelii
  • Euphorbiinae: Euphorbia magnifica
  • Euphorbiinae: Euphorbia mammillaris
  • Euphorbiinae: Euphorbia mauritanica
  • Euphorbiinae: Euphorbia milii var. splendens
  • Euphorbiinae: Euphorbia neriifolia
  • Euphorbiinae: Euphorbia obesa
  • Euphorbiinae: Euphorbia obesa ssp. obesa
  • Euphorbiinae: Euphorbia platyclada
  • Euphorbiinae: Euphorbia polygona cv. 'Snowflake'
  • Euphorbiinae: Euphorbia pseudoglobosa
  • Euphorbiinae: Euphorbia resinifera
  • Euphorbiinae: Euphorbia ritchiei subsp. ritchiei
  • Euphorbiinae: Euphorbia stenoclada
  • Euphorbiinae: Euphorbia susannae
  • Euphorbiinae: Euphorbia tetracanthoides
  • Euphorbiinae: Euphorbia tirucalli
  • Euphorbiinae: Euphorbia trigona
  • Euphorbiinae: Euphorbia virosa ssp. virosa
W/C = Wild Collected
= indicates flowering in past 14 days
= images available for this accession
= map available for this accession
= accession added within past 90 days
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