Flueggea virosa (Willd.) Voigt

English: Common Bushweed

Mandarin: 白饭树 (bai fan shu)

Kingdom: Plantae (2715)

  Phylum: Tracheophyta (2630)

    Class: Magnoliopsida (2217)

      Order: Malpighiales (120)

        Family: Euphorbiaceae (80)(family description)

          Genus: Flueggea (1)

            Epithet: virosa (Willd.) Voigt (2)

Synonyms: Acidoton griseus (Müll.Arg.) Kuntze, Acidoton obovatus (Willd.) Kuntze, Acidoton phyllanthoides (Baill.) Kuntze, Acidoton virosus (Roxb. ex Willd.) Kuntze, Bessera inermis Spreng., Bradleia dioica (Schumach. & Thonn.) Gaertn. ex Vahl, Cicca obovata (Willd.) Kurz, Cicca pentandra Blanco, Conami portoricensis (Kuntze) Britton, Diasperus glaucus (Wall. ex Müll.Arg.) Kuntze, Diasperus hamrur (Forssk.) Kuntze, Diasperus portoricensis Kuntze, Flueggea abyssinica (A.Rich.) Baill., Flueggea angulata (Schumach. & Thonn.) Schrank, Flueggea microcarpa Blume, Flueggea obovata (Willd.) Wall. ex Fern.-Vill., Flueggea ovalis Baill., Flueggea phyllanthoides Baill., Flueggea retusa Voigt, Flueggea senensis Klotzsch, Phyllanthus virosus Roxb. ex Willd., Securinega leucopyrus Brandis, Securinega microcarpa (Blume) Müll.Arg., Xylophylla obovata Willd.

abyssinica => from Abyssinia (Ethiopia)

angulata => having corners

dioica => having stamens and pistils in separate flowers on different plants

glaucus => greyish or bluish

griseus => griseous; pearl grey, verging on blue

inermis => unarmed

microcarpa => bearing small fruit

obovata => egg-shaped

obovatus => egg-shaped

ovalis => oval, egg-shaped; elliptic, but broader at the base

pentandra => five-stamen - from Greek ‘penta’ (five) and ‘andron’ (male)

phyllanthoides => resembling Phyllanthus

portoricensis => from Puerto Rico

retusa => blunted, with a slight notch at a rounded apex

senensis => from Sena, a town on the Zambezi River in central Mozambique

virosa => with poisonous sap, venomous, of evil odour

virosus => with poisonous sap, venomous, of evil odour

Climate: tropical

Habitat: mesophytic

Habit: shrub

Flower colour: green, yellow

Check for Flueggea virosa at

World Flora Online, GBIF or IPNI

• [1135] Flueggea virosa - Flora of Thailand
• [1136] Flueggea virosa (Willd.) Voigt - Flora of Western Australia
• [1646] Flueggea virosa - Flora of China @ efloras.org
• [1769] Flueggea virosa - Pacific Island Ecosystems at Risk (PIER)

• [18] Arbonnier, M. (2004): Trees, shrubs and lianas of West African dry zones. CIRAD, Paris, France; Margraf, Weikersheim, Germany; MNHN, Paris, France.