Biology:Erythroxylum novogranatense

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Short description: Species of flowering plant

Erythroxylum novogranatense
Flowering and fruiting E. novogranatense var. novogranatense
Scientific classification edit
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Clade: Rosids
Order: Malpighiales
Family: Erythroxylaceae
Genus: Erythroxylum
Species:
E. novogranatense
Binomial name
Erythroxylum novogranatense
(D. Morris) Hieron.[1]
Varieties

See here

Synonyms[1]
  • Erythroxylum coca var. novogranatense D.Morris

Erythroxylum novogranatense, also known as Colombian Coca,[2][3] is a species of shrub or small tree[4] in the family Erythroxylaceae native to Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Trinidad-Tobago, and Venezuela.[1] It is used medicinally and as a narcotic.[4] Erythroxylum novogranatense is one of the primary species of cultivated Coca,[5] despite being less widely cultivated than Erythroxylum coca.[6]

Description

Erythroxylum novogranatense var. truxillense flower

Vegetative characteristics

Erythroxylum novogranatense is an up to 3 m tall[7] shrub or small tree.[4][7] The bright green, oblong-elliptic or obovate,[7] petiolate, simple, alternate leaves[4] with a 0.5 cm long petiole[7] are 1.2–4.7 cm long, and 1–1.8 cm wide.[4]

Generative characteristics

The continuously produced,[7] small, solitary or grouped, pedicellate,[4] hermaphrodite flowers[7] have five oblong, yellowish white, 0,4 cm long, and 0,2 cm wide petals.[7] The five 1.5 mm long sepals are basally fused.[4] The flowers are distylous[8] and partly self-compatible,[2] but only the pin (i.e. long-styled) flowers are partially self-compatible and the thrum (i.e. short-styled) flowers are self-incompatible.[8]

Cytology

The chromosome count of Erythroxylum novogranatense is 2n = 24.[9]

Taxonomy

It was first described as Erythroxylum coca var. novogranatense D.Morris by Daniel Morris in 1889.[1][10] It was elevated to the status of a separate species as Erythroxylum novogranatense (D.Morris) Hieron. by Georg Hans Emmo Wolfgang Hieronymus in 1895.[11] It is placed in the section Erythroxylum sect. Archerythroxylum.[12][13] It is closely related to Erythroxylum cataractarum, Erythroxylum gracilipes, and Erythroxylum coca.[2]

Varieties

It has three accepted varieties:[1]

  • Erythroxylum novogranatense var. novogranatense
  • Erythroxylum novogranatense var. tobagense O.E.Schulz
  • Erythroxylum novogranatense var. truxillense (Rusby) Plowman

Etymology

The specific epithet novogranatense, from the Latin novus meaning new and granatensis meaning of Granada,[7] refers to the geographic origin of the plant in Colombia, which was formely known as Nueva Granada.[7][14]

Distribution and habitat

Erythroxylum novogranatense is native to Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Trinidad-Tobago, and Venezuela.[1] Is is only known from cultivation[8][15] and Erythroxylum novogranatense would not persist in the wild without human intervention.[13] It tolerates non-acidic soils.[16] It has been Introduced to South-Central and Southeastern China, Hainan, Java, Leeward Islands, Sulawesi, Taiwan, Vietnam, and the Windward Islands.[1]

Ecology

Erythroxylum novogranatense is a highland variety that is utilized in lowland areas. It is cultivated in drier regions in South America, where it requires irrigation.[17]

Toxicity

The cocaine content in leaves of E. novogranatense var. novogranatense is 0.55-0.93%, with an average of 0.77% and in E. novogranatense var. truxillense the cocaine content is 0.42-1.02%, with a mean of 0.72%.[18] The foliage also contains cinnamoylcocaine.[18][19] The plants also contain methyl salicylate.[14]

Use

As one of the oldest cultivated plants in the Americas,[20] Erythroxylum novogranatense has been cultivated as a source of cocaine[8] for thousands of years,[21] but its role in the production of cocaine is relatively small.[14] Erythroxylum novogranatense var. novogranatense represents about 20% of the coca crop grown in Colombia.[13] Erythroxylum novogranatense var. truxillense is used as a flavouring agent of Coca Cola,[18][15][6] which uses decocainised extracts of this variety.[14] The cocaine produced by the process of decocanisation is sold for legal use in modern surgery for pain management.[13] Dried leaves of Erythroxylum novogranatense var. novogranatense are used in the preparation of coca tea by the indigenous Nasa tribe of Colombia.[22] The leaves of Erythroxylum novogranatense are also used to produce Coca flour.[23][24] It is cultivated as an ornamental plant[18][21] throughout tropical countries.[18]

Legality

It is illegal in Colombia.[14] It has been subject to extensive eradication.[25]

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 1.6 Erythroxylum novogranatense (D.Morris) Hieron. |. (n.d.). Plants of the World Online. Retrieved February 11, 2026, from https://powo.science.kew.org/taxon/urn:lsid:ipni.org:names:97004-2
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 White, D. M., M. B. Islam, and R. J. Mason-Gamer. 2019. Phylogenetic inference in section Archerythroxylum informs taxonomy, biogeography, and the domestication of coca (Erythroxylum species). American Journal of Botany 106(1): 154–165.
  3. ↑ Classification for Kingdom Plantae Down to Species Erythroxylum novogranatense (Morris) Hieron. (n.d.). USDA Plants Database. Retrieved February 13, 2026, from https://plants.usda.gov/classification/84122
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 4.4 4.5 4.6 Erythroxylum novogranatense in Flora of China @ efloras.org. (n.d.). Retrieved February 11, 2026, from http://www.efloras.org/florataxon.aspx?flora_id=2&taxon_id=242426476
  5. ↑ Tackling the challenge of coca plant ID: wild vs cultivated for cocaine. (2024, July 17). University of Portsmouth. https://www.port.ac.uk/news-events-and-blogs/news/tackling-the-challenge-of-coca-plant-id-wild-vs-cultivated-for-cocaine
  6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 We can’t distinguish wild coca plants from those grown to make cocaine. (2024, July 10). EurekAlert! Retrieved February 11, 2026, from https://www.eurekalert.org/news-releases/1050230
  7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 7.3 7.4 7.5 7.6 7.7 7.8 Puccio, P., & Beltramini, M. (2018, September 17). Erythroxylum novogranatense. Monaco Nature Encyclopedia. Retrieved February 11, 2026, from https://www.monaconatureencyclopedia.com/erythroxylum-novogranatense/?lang=en
  8. ↑ 8.0 8.1 8.2 8.3 Ganders, F. R. (1979). Heterostyly in Erythroxylum coca (Erythroxylaceae). Botanical Journal of the Linnean Society, 78(1), 11-20.
  9. ↑ Plowman, T., Rudenberg, L., & Greene, C. W. (1978). Chromosome Numbers in Neotropical Erythroxylum (Erythroxylaceae). Botanical Museum Leaflets, Harvard University, 26(5), 203–209. http://www.jstor.org/stable/41762798
  10. ↑ Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. (1887). Bulletin of miscellaneous information (Issue 25, p. 5). H.M. Stationery Office. https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/page/40869274
  11. ↑ Erythroxylum novogranatense (D.Morris) Hieron. (n.d.). International Plant Names Index. Retrieved February 11, 2026, from https://www.ipni.org/n/97004-2
  12. ↑ Erythroxylum sect. Archerythroxylum Schulz. (n.d.). BioLib. Retrieved February 14, 2026, from https://www.biolib.cz/en/taxonsubtaxa/id1165853/
  13. ↑ 13.0 13.1 13.2 13.3 Islam, M. (2011). Tracing the evolutionary history of coca (Erythroxylum) (Doctoral dissertation, University of Colorado at Boulder).
  14. ↑ 14.0 14.1 14.2 14.3 14.4 Idaho State Police. (2011, July 8). Idaho State Police Forensic Laboratory Training Manual Cocaine.
  15. ↑ 15.0 15.1 White, D., Meinhardt, L., Bailey, B., & Pirro, S. (2022). The complete genome sequences of Erythroxylum coca and Erythroxylum novogranatense. Biodiversity genomes, 2022, 10-56179.
  16. ↑ Johnson, Emanuel L.; Campbell, T. Austin; Foy, Charles D. (November 1997). "Effect of soil pH on mineral element concentrations of two Erythroxylum species". Journal of Plant Nutrition 20 (11): 1503–1515. doi:10.1080/01904169709365352. Bibcode: 1997JPlaN..20.1503J. 
  17. ↑ Plowman T. "Botanical Perspectives on Coca." Journal of Psychedelic Drugs. 1979. 11(1-2): 103-117.
  18. ↑ 18.0 18.1 18.2 18.3 18.4 Plowman, T.; Rivier, L. (1983). "Cocaine and Cinnamoylcocaine Content of Erythroxylum Species". Annals of Botany 51 (5): 641–659. doi:10.1093/oxfordjournals.aob.a086511. ISSN 0305-7364. https://www.jstor.org/stable/42756923. 
  19. ↑ National Center for Biotechnology Information (2026). PubChem Compound Summary for CID 6440936, Cinnamoylcocaine. Retrieved February 14, 2026 from https://pubchem.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/compound/Cinnamoylcocaine.
  20. ↑ Conzelman, C. S., & White, D. M. (2016). The botanical science and cultural value of Coca leaf in South America. Roadmaps to regulation: coca, cocaine, and derivatives. Oxford: The Beckley Foundation.
  21. ↑ 21.0 21.1 Restrepo, D. A., Saenz, E., Jara-Muñoz, O. A., Calixto-Botía, I. F., Rodríguez-Suárez, S., Zuleta, P., ... & D’Auria, J. C. (2019). Erythroxylum in focus: an interdisciplinary review of an overlooked genus. Molecules, 24(20), 3788.
  22. ↑ Merchan Otalora, A. (2019). Drugs in oral fluid–an evaluation of the release of cocaine and cocaine derivatives from oral drug depots into oral fluid (Doctoral dissertation, Bournemouth University).
  23. ↑ Rubio, N. C., Herbello-Hermelo, P., Álvarez-Freire, I., Cabarcos-Fernández, P., Tabernero-Duque, M. J., Sánchez-Sellero, I., ... & Moreda-Piñeiro, A. (2025). Impact of coca leaf flour candy consumption on cocaine and benzoylecgonine levels: The role of hygrine and cuscohygrine in distinguishing licit from illicit cocaine use. Forensic Science International, 371, 112494.
  24. ↑ Sanchez, D. L. T., & Restrepo, D. (2018). Coca Industrialization: A Path to Innovation, Development, and Peace in Colombia. Open Society Foundations.
  25. ↑ White, D. M., Huang, J. P., Jara-Muñoz, O. A., MadriñáN, S., Ree, R. H., & Mason-Gamer, R. J. (2021). The origins of coca: museum genomics reveals multiple independent domestications from progenitor Erythroxylum gracilipes. Systematic Biology, 70(1), 1-13.


Wikidata ☰ Q5396543 entry



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