JATROPHA GIFFORDIANA

This member of the Euphorbiaceae family was given this name by Bijan Dehgan and Grady Linder Webster in 1978. It is found in the coastal dunes on Baja California in western Mexico. It is growing in a well drained sandy soil with some water and lots of sun. The caudex might grow to eight centimetres in diameter, the entire plant from 100 to 150 centimetres in height. The flowers are red to bright red..

The genera name from the Greek words ἰατρός; iatros, meaning 'physician', and τροφή; trophe meaning 'nutrition', as to medicinal uses. The species name after Ernest M. Gifford, 1920-2006, an American botanist with interests in plant anatomy, morphology, and cytology. The leaves by Glenn Ehrenberg, Inaturalist.ca. The fruit by Glenn Ehrenberg, Inaturalist.ca.