Euphorbia grandicornis, the cow's horn plant, is a succulent plant of the Euphorbiaceae or spurge family. It is native to the KwaZulu-Natal province and the Northern Provinces of South Africa and to Mozambique and Eswatini.[2][4]
| Euphorbia grandicornis | |
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| Euphorbia grandicornis in the Jardín de Cactus in Guatiza on Lanzarote in the Canary Islands | |
Scientific classification 
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| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| Clade: | Tracheophytes |
| Clade: | Angiosperms |
| Clade: | Eudicots |
| Clade: | Rosids |
| Order: | Malpighiales |
| Family: | Euphorbiaceae |
| Genus: | Euphorbia |
| Species: | E. grandicornis
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| Binomial name | |
| Euphorbia grandicornis Blanc (1888)
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| Subspecies[2] | |
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| Synonyms[3] | |
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synonyms of E. grandicornis subsp. grandicornis:
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The specific epithet "grandicornis" means "with large horns," and refers to the pairs of spines, which look like the horns of a bull.[5]
Description
editEuphorbia grandicornis is a shrub with succulent, spiny stems that reaches a size of 0.5–2 m in height. Small leaves are formed between the spines but later drop off; the stems do the bulk of the photosynthesis. It is much branched from the base, with thorns, the branches 3-angled, erect or ascending, very deeply constricted in segments, subsagittate-ovate or reniform-sagittate, 5–13 cm long and 5 – 15 cm in diameter.[5][6][7]
The fruit is showy and pops open when ripe.[6]
It is found in dense dry mixed forest, on granite slopes, and on rocks, at elevations of 40 to 700 meters.[8]
Subspecies
editTwo subspecies are accepted:[2]
- Euphorbia grandicornis subsp. grandicornis – Mozambique, Eswatini, Northern Provinces, and KwaZulu-Natal
- Euphorbia grandicornis subsp. sejuncta L.C.Leach – north-central Mozambique
Uses
editIt is grown as a houseplant in temperate regions.[9]
Chemical constituents of E. grandicornis have been studied for their use in cancer treatment.[10]
References
edit- ^ Osborne, J. (2019). "Euphorbia grandicornis". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2019. IUCN: e.T120955787A120980233. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2019-1.RLTS.T120955787A120980233.en.
- ^ a b c Euphorbia grandicornis Blanc. Plants of the World Online. Retrieved 6 October 2023.
- ^ Euphorbia grandicornis subsp. grandicornis. Plants of the World Online. Retrieved 6 October 2023.
- ^ Roskov Y.; Kunze T.; Orrell T.; Abucay L.; Paglinawan L.; Culham A.; Bailly N.; Kirk P.; Bourgoin T.; Baillargeon G.; Decock W.; De Wever A.; Didžiulis V., eds. (2019). "Species 2000 & ITIS Catalogue of Life: 2019 Annual Checklist". Catalogue of Life. TaxonID: 43043980. Archived from the original (ZIP) on 2019-12-18. Retrieved 2019-11-11.
- ^ a b "NParks | Euphorbia grandicornis". www.nparks.gov.sg. Retrieved 2022-07-21.
- ^ a b "Plant database entry for Cow's Horn (Euphorbia grandicornis) with 19 images, one comment, and 25 data details". garden.org. Retrieved 2022-07-21.
- ^ "Euphorbia grandicornis". www.llifle.com. Retrieved 2022-07-21.
- ^ Blanc (1888), In: Hints Cacti, ed. 2: 68
- ^ "Эуфорбия (молочай) - Все о комнатных растениях на flowersweb.info". www.flowersweb.info. Retrieved 2022-07-21.
- ^ Kemboi, Douglas; Langat, Moses K.; Siwe-Noundou, Xavier; Krause, Rui W. M.; Isaacs, Michelle Louise; Tembu, Vuyelwa Jacqueline (25 Mar 2022). "In vitro antibacterial and cytotoxic effects of Euphorbia grandicornis Blanc chemical constituents". BMC Complementary Medicine and Therapies. 22 (1): 90. doi:10.1186/s12906-022-03571-8. ISSN 2662-7671. PMC 8957186. PMID 35337309.