Jatropha curcas

Botanical name : Jatropha curcas Linn.
Family : Euphorbiaceae

SANSKRIT SYNONYMS
Dravanti

AYURVEDIC PROPERTIES
Rasa : Kashaya, Tikta
Guna : Lakhu
Virya : Ushna

PLANT NAME IN DIFFERENT LANGUAGES
English : Purging nut
Hindi : Jungli erand, Pahari erand
Malayalam : Katalavanakku, Appa, Kammatti

Distribution – Throughout India growing wild in planes.

PLANT DESCRIPTION
A large deciduous shrub with soft wood and sticky juice. Leaves alternate, ovate, cordate, with 3-4 indistinct lobes. Flowers small, greenish yellow, in loose axillary panicles. Fruits ovoid, greenish turns black on ripe, split to 3. Seeds black.

MEDICINAL PROPERTIES
Plant pacifies vitiated pitta, kapha, constipation, skin diseases, hemorrhoids, worm infestation, rheumatoid arthritis, and paralysis.
Useful part : Leaves, Seeds, Oil.