Tung Oil Tree

Aleurites fordii Hemsl.

al-you-RIGHT-ees  FORD-ee-aye

Euphorbiaceae

Explanation of name: Aleurites is Greek for farinose (powdery) (BA2). Named for C. Ford, former superintendent of the botanic garden at Hong Kong (BA2).

Natural range: Central Asia

Recognition: A tree with milky sap and variable leaves ranging in shape from egg-shaped to heart-shaped or 3-lobed on long narrow stalks. The leaves are usually pubescent, although the hairs can disappear with time. There are two glands (visible as small bumps) where the leaf stalk (petiole) joins the blade. The flowers are white and/or reddish with petals an inch long. The fruit is more or less globe-shaped or top-shaped, 2”-3” in diameter (BA2, PBCC).

            The related Candlenut Tree (Aleurites moluccana Willd.) is similar, including the petiole glands, but has star-shaped hairs under its leaves. This species produces a combustible oil in its seeds. Also related and similar, the Chinese Tallow Tree (Sapium sebiferum L.) Roxb. likewise has paired glands on the top of its petiole and milky sap; its leaves are hairless, and usually more or less rhombic (looking like Poplar leaves).

Key to the Oil-Bearing Trees in the Euphorbiaceae

All with milky sap and paired glands at top of petiole:

1. Leaves hairless…Chinese Tallow Tree (Sapium sebiferum)

1. Leaves pubescent (may become glabrous with age)…2

2. Leaf hairs stellate (star-shaped)…Candlenut Tree (Aleurites moluccana)

2. Leaf hairs simple…Tung Oil Tree (Aleurites fordii)

Landscape uses: The use of this Florida Exotic Pest Plant Council Category II invasive species is not recommended. The oil and plant parts are toxic.

Additional note: Tung Oil from the seeds is valued for wood finishing.