Brief Description Of The Sapium Sebigenous Tree

2.1 Sapium sebiferum

Sapium, is a genus of flowering plants in the family Euphorbiaceae encompass about 125 species these consist of shrubs and trees. It has a pantropical distribution and is scattered in tropical regions of all the major continents.ie in Africa, in Asia and in the America. About a dozen species occur in India and most common, species are Sapium sebiferum, Sapium ellipticum and Sapium glandulosum. These species have been historically cultured as a seed-oil crop for soap production and other tallow product (Sapium Jacq, 2010)

Genus Sapium is a small to medium-sized, deciduous or semi deciduous tree to 12 m in height, uncommonly reaching 20-25 m (max. 35). Bark light brown to very dark (almost black) and coarse; branchlets are

Sapium sebiferum is a tree belonging to (Euphorbiaceae) family. At ripeness it classically reaches a maximum height of 15 m. Its bark is reddish-brown with broad fissures and narrow ridges, and it frequently peels off vertically in narrow strips. The branches, which stars relatively low on the trunk, are typically lengthy and drooping. The twigs are slender and waxy. The aspen-like simple leaves are alternate and deciduous, broad rhombic to ovate, 3-8 cm long and 3-6 cm broad, and have a flat margin. Leaf bases are broad rounded, and the leaf blade terminates in a regularly tapering tip. The upper leaf surfaces are intermediate to dark green, and the lower to some extent paler. Leaf veins are yellow and evident on both sides. Petioles are generally 2-5 cm long, with 2 enlarged glands on the upper side instantly below the leaf blade. At the bottom of every petiole is a pair of stipule-like appendages about 3 mm long. In autumn, the leaves turn yellow, orange, and scarlet. S. sebiferum is monoecious (i.e. means it has separate male and female flowers on the same plant). The flowers are generally greenish or yellow in color and inflorescences up to 20 cm long. Every pistillate flower has a three-lobed ovary, three styles, and no petals. The staminate (male) flowers arise in clusters at the upper

sebiferum has milky white steamy sap which may act as a skin irritant or as a diarrhetic. The outer wrapping of the seeds contains a solid fat called as Chinese vegetable tallow, and the kernels generate a drying oil called stillingia oil. Candles, soap, cloth dressing, and fuel are prepared from the tallow. The oil is used in machine oils, as a rough lamp oil, in making varnish and paints (because of its rapid drying properties), and as alternate for linseed oil. The oil is also apparently used in Chinese medicine as an emetic or purgative, but overdose can cause violent sickness and maybe death (Duke et al., 1983). S. sebiferum may represent an industrial noxious hazard in terms of both pro-inflammatory and tumor-promoting effects. After the seeds have been processed, the remaining cakes are often used as fertilizer/green manure. A black dye can be prepared by boiling leaves of S. sebiferum in alum water. Tallow wood is white and close-grained, suitable for carving and for the manufacturing of blocks in Chinese printing. The wood is used for furniture manufacturing and incense. Oil from S. sebiferum seeds can potentially be a alternate for petroleum. Scheld et al. (1980) (Brooks et al., 1987) reports yields of S. sebiferum seeds ranging from 4,000 to 11,000 kg/ha, and estimates that 25 barrels of oil per year can be produced as a source of energy. A number of phytoconstituents have been investigated from Sapium sebiferum. The chemical constituents