Croton schiedeanus
Schltdl.
Common Name: COLPECHI, COPALCHI
Occasional understory evergreen tree (10-15 m) found primarily
along roadsides and stream banks where insolation is abundant
and secondary growth thrives. This is a widespread and common
tree in Costa Rica and it is perhaps most notable for its extensive
use in traditional medicine.
Description: Colpechi has a small (15-20 cm), cylindrical
and regular trunk that is covered with smooth, dark brown
bark. Branches occur thickly along the bole and they create a
dense though narrow, dark green crown. 
Twigs, petioles and leaf mid-ribs
are brown and minutely pubescent. The freshly pealed bark exudes
a strong, penetrating, medicine-like odor of menthol or pine.
Leaves are simple and alternate, having a dark-green color
and a thin, flexible texture. The blades themselves are smooth
and elliptical in shape, with stubby drip tips and very long,
flat-topped petioles (3 cm). Variable in size, leaf dimensions
range from 10-21 cm in length and from 4-8 cm in width. Flowers
appear in stringy, axillary racemes (10 cm). Male and female floral
structures are borne by different blossoms, and the two flower
sexes are found spatially segregated on the same raceme - a characteristic
that is not uncommon among members of the Euphorbiaceae family.
The more abundant male flowers (about 20) cover the distal end
of the fuzzy-looking spike while female flowers (about five) are
clustered near its mid-section. The male flowers (5 mm in diameter)
contain five small pale sepals; five tiny, white translucent petals;
and ten short stamens with disproportionately large anthers. Colpechi
flowering periods are irregular and blossoms may appear on individual
trees at almost any time of the year - with the exception of the
early wet-season months of May, June, and July. However, definite
flowering peaks - recognizable for their universally prolific
nature and high degree of synchronization - occur several times
during the summer months of December through April. These peaks
are brief and randomly timed. Fruits are dry, woody capsules
(1 cm) that grow from the ovaries of the female flowers on the
old racemes. Green and spherical when mature, each capsule is
textured by small protuberances that cover its outer surface.
Drying on the tree, the capsule has a thin outer skin that splits
into six sections, opening from the bottom up - umbrella fashion.
The capsule's three inner compartments then separate and open,
allowing three brown seeds to fall to the soil. Harvests continue
- at low levels - all year round.
Similar Species: Colpechi leaves, possessing characteristics
that are shared by most rain forest trees (simple alternate arrangement,
elliptical shape) are not very useful for identification purposes.
Fortunately, this tree is almost always fertile, with either fruits
or flowers visible amid the foliage and near branch tips. These
structures are distinctive and should facilitate the recognition
of this species in the field.
Natural History: Flowers are pollinated by a variety
of insects, especially bees and wasps. During periods of profuse
flowering, the hum of insect activity around the blossoms is clearly
audible from a distance of several meters. Fruits are not well
dispersed - apparently falling directly to the forest floor once
released from the capsules. Colpechi is a light-loving, secondary
forest species that is found most abundantly in light gaps produced
by natural tree-falls, on stream banks, and alongside roads and
trails.
Euphorbs, as a general family trait, maintain flowers whose sexes
are separate (bisexual blossoms are much more common). Often,
the distinct flower sexes are restricted to different trees (such
a species is said to be dioecious). Pilon (Hyeronima oblonga)
is an example of such a Euphorb. In Colpechi, the two types of
flowers appear on the same tree but on different portions of the
raceme - a trait shared by the members of the Croton, Sapium,
and Mabea genera. In each of these cases, the female flowers
- and later the fruits - are borne on the basal portion of the
inflorescence. In Croton, the male flowers also mature
earlier than the female flowers, creating a temporal barrier between
the two types of blossoms and diminishing the chances of that
self-pollination will occur.
Uses: Leaves of Colpechi have been placed on wounds
to help reduce inflammation and swelling (Q. Jimenez, personal
communication, September 1990).
Distribution: Colpechi ranges from Mexico through South
America.
Flower Fruit Fruit/Leaf
Twigs, petioles and leaf mid-ribs
are brown and minutely pubescent. The freshly pealed bark exudes
a strong, penetrating, medicine-like odor of menthol or pine.
Leaves are simple and alternate, having a dark-green color
and a thin, flexible texture. The blades themselves are smooth
and elliptical in shape, with stubby drip tips and very long,
flat-topped petioles (3 cm). Variable in size, leaf dimensions
range from 10-21 cm in length and from 4-8 cm in width. Flowers
appear in stringy, axillary racemes (10 cm). Male and female floral
structures are borne by different blossoms, and the two flower
sexes are found spatially segregated on the same raceme - a characteristic
that is not uncommon among members of the Euphorbiaceae family.
The more abundant male flowers (about 20) cover the distal end
of the fuzzy-looking spike while female flowers (about five) are
clustered near its mid-section. The male flowers (5 mm in diameter)
contain five small pale sepals; five tiny, white translucent petals;
and ten short stamens with disproportionately large anthers. Colpechi
flowering periods are irregular and blossoms may appear on individual
trees at almost any time of the year - with the exception of the
early wet-season months of May, June, and July. However, definite
flowering peaks - recognizable for their universally prolific
nature and high degree of synchronization - occur several times
during the summer months of December through April. These peaks
are brief and randomly timed. Fruits are dry, woody capsules
(1 cm) that grow from the ovaries of the female flowers on the
old racemes. Green and spherical when mature, each capsule is
textured by small protuberances that cover its outer surface.
Drying on the tree, the capsule has a thin outer skin that splits
into six sections, opening from the bottom up - umbrella fashion.
The capsule's three inner compartments then separate and open,
allowing three brown seeds to fall to the soil. Harvests continue
- at low levels - all year round.
