Natural rubber, also called India rubber, latex, Amazonian rubber, caucho or caoutchouc, as initially produced, consists of polymers of the organic compound isoprene, with minor impurities of other organic compounds, plus water. Thailand and Indonesia are two of the leading rubber producers. Types of polyisoprene that are used as natural rubbers are classified as elastomers.
Hevea brasiliensis, the Pará rubber tree, sharinga tree, seringueira, or, most commonly, the rubber tree or rubber plant, is a flowering plant belonging to the spurge family Euphorbiaceae. It is the most economically important member of the genus Hevea because the milky latex extracted from the tree is the primary source of natural rubber.
Eucalyptus pauciflora, commonly known as snow gum, cabbage gum or white sally, is a species of tree or mallee that is native to eastern Australia. It has smooth bark, lance-shaped to elliptical leaves, flower buds in clusters of between seven and fifteen, white flowers and cup-shaped, conical or hemispherical fruit. It is widespread and locally common in woodland in cold sites above 700 m (2,300 ft) altitude.
Parthenium argentatumA. Gray, commonly known as the guayule, is a perennial woody shrub in the aster family, Asteraceae, that is native to the rangeland area of the Chihuahuan Desert; including the southwestern United States and northern Mexico. It was first documented by J.M. Bigelow in 1852 through the Mexican Boundary Survey and was first described by Asa Gray. Natural Rubber, ethanol, non-toxic adhesives, and other specialty chemicals can be extracted from guayule. An alternative source of latex that is hypoallergenic, unlike the normal Hevea rubber, can also be extracted. While Castilla elastica was the most widely used rubber source of Mesoamericans in pre-Columbian times, guayule was also used, though less frequently. The name "guayule" derives from the Nahuatl word ulli/olli, "rubber".
Hevea is a genus of flowering plants in the spurge family, Euphorbiaceae, with about ten members. It is also one of many names used commercially for the wood of the most economically important rubber tree, H. brasiliensis. The genus is native to tropical South America but is widely cultivated in other tropical countries and naturalized in several of them. It was first described in 1775.
Ficus elastica, the rubber fig, rubber bush, rubber tree, rubber plant, or Indian rubber bush, Indian rubber tree, is a species of plant in the fig genus, native to eastern parts of South Asia and southeast Asia. It has become naturalized in Sri Lanka, the West Indies, and the US State of Florida.
Rigidoporus microporus is a plant pathogen, known to cause white root rot disease on various tropical crops, such as cacao, cassava, tea, with economical importance on the para rubber tree.
Fordia pauciflora is a species of legume in the family Fabaceae. It is a tree found in Peninsular Malaysia and Thailand. It is threatened by habitat loss.
Levenhookia pauciflora, the deceptive stylewort, is a dicotyledonous plant that belongs to the genus Levenhookia. It is an ephemeral annual that grows from 5–10 centimetres (2.0–3.9 in) tall with ovate to suborbicular leaves. Flowers are white and bloom from September to November in its native range. L. pauciflora is endemic to Western Australia where it grows in sandy soils in sandstone or granitic areas. The flowers of L. pauciflora resemble those of Stylidium ecorne and it has been said that S. ecorne mimics L. pauciflora to take advantage of its pollinators.
Vatica pauciflora is a species of tree in the family Dipterocarpaceae. The specific epithet pauciflora is Latin for 'few-flowered'.
Rubberwood is a light-colored medium-density tropical hardwood obtained from the Pará rubber tree, usually from trees grown in rubber plantations. Rubberwood is commonly advertised as an "environmentally friendly" wood, as it makes use of plantation trees that have already served a useful function.
Latex is a stable dispersion (emulsion) of polymer microparticles in water. Latexes are found in nature, but synthetic latexes are common as well.
Thelymitra pauciflora, commonly called the slender sun orchid in Australia and maikaika or maika in New Zealand is a species of orchid in the family Orchidaceae. It is one of the most widespread and common orchid species in Australia, growing in all states except Western Australia and the Northern Territory, and also in New Zealand including Chatham Island.
Taraxacum kok-saghyz, often abbreviated as TKS and commonly referred to as the Kazakh dandelion, rubber root, or Russian dandelion, is a species of dandelion native to Kazakhstan, Kirghizia and Uzbekistan, that is notable for its production of high quality rubber. T. kok-saghyz was discovered in Kazakhstan in 1932 by the Soviet Union in an effort to find a domestic source of rubber.
Tabernaemontana pauciflora is a species of plant in the family Apocynaceae. It grows as a shrub or small tree up to 6 metres (20 ft) tall, with a trunk diameter of up to 10 centimetres (4 in). The bark is pale grey to grey-brown. Inflorescences bear up to 15 flowers. The fragrant flowers feature white, sometimes yellow-throated, corolla lobes. The fruit is orange or yellow with paired follicles, up to 6 centimetres (2 in) in diameter.
Kopsia pauciflora is a tree in the family Apocynaceae. The specific epithet pauciflora means "few-flowered".
Grevillea pauciflora, commonly known as the few-flowered grevillea, is a shrub of the genus Grevillea native to an area along the south coast in the Great Southern and Goldfields-Esperance regions of Western Australia.
Hevea nitida is a species of rubber tree in the genus Hevea, belonging to the family Euphorbiaceae. It is a medium-sized evergreen tree up to 27 m (90 ft) tall. It is native to the rainforests of northern Brazil and Colombia.
Hevea guianensis is a species of rubber tree in the genus Hevea, belonging to the family Euphorbiaceae. It is native to the rainforests of Ecuador, Venezuela, the Guyanas, Brazil, Colombia and Peru. It generally grows on well-drained soils or on those that are only lightly inundated, on river banks, in gallery forests, savannah forests and wooded slopes.
Hevea benthamiana is a species of rubber tree in the genus Hevea, belonging to the family Euphorbiaceae. A medium-sized deciduous tree growing to a height of about 27 m (90 ft), it is native to the rainforests of northern Brazil, Colombia and Venezuela.
