Euclea divinorum

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Magic guarri
Euclea divinorum, blomme, Manie van der Schijff BT, a.jpg
Flowers
Scientific classification Red Pencil Icon.png
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Clade: Asterids
Order: Ericales
Family: Ebenaceae
Genus: Euclea
Species:
E. divinorum
Binomial name
Euclea divinorum
Synonyms [2]

Euclea divinorum, called diamond leaf, diamond-leaved euclea, magic guarri, and toothbrush tree, is a species of flowering plant in the genus Euclea , native to eastern and southern Africa. [2] A shrub or small tree, it has many uses in Africa, including as a source for dye for wool, for tanning leather, and an ink, and as a preservative for milk (allowing it to keep for up to a year), and, by chewing on a twig, as a toothbrush. [3]

Foliage on a shrub in Pretoria Euclea divinorum, loof en blomknoppe, Manie van der Schijff BT, a.jpg
Foliage on a shrub in Pretoria

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References

  1. Trans. Cambridge Philos. Soc. 12: 99 (1873)
  2. 1 2 "Euclea divinorum Hiern". Plants of the World Online. Board of Trustees of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. 2017. Retrieved 7 December 2020.
  3. Cardon, D. (2005). Dyes and Tannins. PROTA Foundation. p. 76-79. ISBN   9789057821592.