Taxon:  Rauvolfia serpentina (L.) Benth. ex Kurz



Summary
Genus:
Rauvolfia
Family:
Apocynaceae
Subfamily:
Rauvolfioideae
Tribe:
Vinceae
Nomen number:
30895
Place of publication:
Forest fl. Burma 2:171.  1877
Verified:
01/23/2012 ARS Systematic Botanists.
Accessions:
2 (1  active, 0  available) in National Plant Germplasm System.  (Map it)
Other conspecific taxa
Autonyms (not in current use), synonyms and invalid designations
Basionym
Ophioxylon serpentinum L.

Images (1 total. Click on image for more.)
Seed

Reference(s)
  1. APHIS. Agricultural Risk Management System United States Department of Agriculture.
  2. Backer, C. A. & R. C. Bakhuizen van den Brink, Jr. 1963-1968. Flora of Java.
  3. CITES. Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) Appendices I, II and III (on-line resource).
  4. Dassanayake, M. D. & F. R. Fosberg, eds. 1980-. A revised handbook to the flora of Ceylon.
  5. Duke, J. A. et al. 2002. CRC Handbook of medicinal herbs
  6. Encke, F. et al. 1984. Zander: Handwörterbuch der Pflanzennamen, 13. Auflage
  7. Erhardt, W. et al. 2008. Der große Zander: Enzyklopädie der Pflanzennamen
  8. Farnsworth, N. R. & D. D. Soejarto. 1988. Global importance of medicinal plants (unpublished draft manuscript rev. 23)
  9. Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO). 2010. Ecocrop (on-line resource).
  10. Fosberg, F. R. et al. 1979-1982. Geographical checklist of the Micronesian Dicotyledonae/ Pteridophyta and Gymnospermae.
  11. Grierson, A. J. C. & D. J. Long. 1984-. Flora of Bhutan including a record of plants from Sikkim.
  12. Hara, H. et al. 1978-1982. An enumeration of the flowering plants of Nepal.
  13. Hendrian & D. J. Middleton. 1999. Revision of Rauvolfia (Apocynaceae) in Malesia. Blumea 44:460-462.
  14. Liberty Hyde Bailey Hortorium. 1976. Hortus third. A concise dictionary of plants cultivated in the United States and Canada
  15. Matthew, K. M. 1983. The flora of the Tamilnadu Carnatic.
  16. McGuffin, M., J. T. Kartesz, A. Y. Leung, & A. O. Tucker. 2000. Herbs of commerce, ed. 2 American Herbal Products Association, Silver Spring, Maryland.
  17. Nasir, E. & S. I. Ali, eds. 1970-. Flora of [West] Pakistan.
  18. Padua, L. S. de et al., eds. 1999. Medicinal and poisonous plants 1. In: Faridah Hanum, I. & L. J. G. van der Maesen, eds., Plant Resources of South-East Asia (PROSEA) 12(1):430.
  19. Personal Care Products Council. International Nomenclature Cosmetic Ingredient
  20. Smitinand, T. & K. Larsen, eds. 1970-. Flora of Thailand.
  21. Steenis, C. G. G. J. van, ed. 1948-. Flora malesiana.
  22. Walker, E. 1976. Flora of Okinawa and the southern Ryukyu Islands.
  23. Woodson, R. E., Jr. et al. 1957. Rauwolfia: botany, pharmacognosy, chemistry and pharmacology
  24. Wu Zheng-yi & P. H. Raven et al., eds. 1994-. Flora of China (English edition).
  25. 1961. Webster's third new international dictionary.
Common names
LanguageNameAlternate namenoteseqCitation
Englishajmaline  11961. Webster's third new international dictionary.
EnglishJava devil-pepper  1Erhardt, W. et al. 2008. Der große Zander: Enzyklopädie der Pflanzennamen
Englishrauwolfia  1Duke, J. A. et al. 2002. CRC Handbook of medicinal herbs
Englishserpentine-wood  1Wiersema, J. H. & B. León. 1999. World economic plants: a standard reference CRC Press, Boca Raton, FL.
Englishsnakewood  1Duke, J. A. et al. 2002. CRC Handbook of medicinal herbs
GermanJava-Teufelspfeffer  2Erhardt, W. et al. 2008. Der große Zander: Enzyklopädie der Pflanzennamen
Transcribed Chineseshe gen mu  2Wu Zheng-yi & P. H. Raven et al., eds. 1994-. Flora of China (English edition).
Distribution
order_codeStatusContinentSubcontinentCountryStateNoteReference
1NativeAsia-TemperateChinaChinaYunnan Sheng Wu Zheng-yi & P. H. Raven et al., eds. 1994-. Flora of China (English edition).
1NativeAsia-TropicalIndian SubcontinentBhutan  Grierson, A. J. C. & D. J. Long. 1984-. Flora of Bhutan including a record of plants from Sikkim.
1NativeAsia-TropicalIndian SubcontinentIndia  Hendrian & D. J. Middleton. 1999. Revision of Rauvolfia (Apocynaceae) in Malesia. Blumea 44:460-462.
1NativeAsia-TropicalIndian SubcontinentNepal  Hara, H. et al. 1978-1982. An enumeration of the flowering plants of Nepal.
1NativeAsia-TropicalIndian SubcontinentSri Lanka  Dassanayake, M. D. & F. R. Fosberg, eds. 1980-. A revised handbook to the flora of Ceylon.
1NativeAsia-TropicalIndo-ChinaCambodia  Hendrian & D. J. Middleton. 1999. Revision of Rauvolfia (Apocynaceae) in Malesia. Blumea 44:460-462.
1NativeAsia-TropicalIndo-ChinaLaos  Hendrian & D. J. Middleton. 1999. Revision of Rauvolfia (Apocynaceae) in Malesia. Blumea 44:460-462.
1NativeAsia-TropicalIndo-ChinaMyanmar  Hendrian & D. J. Middleton. 1999. Revision of Rauvolfia (Apocynaceae) in Malesia. Blumea 44:460-462.
1NativeAsia-TropicalIndo-ChinaThailand  Smitinand, T. & K. Larsen, eds. 1970-. Flora of Thailand.
1NativeAsia-TropicalIndo-ChinaVietnam  Hendrian & D. J. Middleton. 1999. Revision of Rauvolfia (Apocynaceae) in Malesia. Blumea 44:460-462.
1NativeAsia-TropicalMalesiaIndonesiaJawa Hendrian & D. J. Middleton. 1999. Revision of Rauvolfia (Apocynaceae) in Malesia. Blumea 44:460-462.
1NativeAsia-TropicalMalesiaIndonesiaLesser Sunda Islands Hendrian & D. J. Middleton. 1999. Revision of Rauvolfia (Apocynaceae) in Malesia. Blumea 44:460-462.
2CultivatedAsia-TemperateCaucasusGeorgia  Padua, L. S. de et al., eds. 1999. Medicinal and poisonous plants 1. In: Faridah Hanum, I. & L. J. G. van der Maesen, eds., Plant Resources of South-East Asia (PROSEA) 12(1):430.
2CultivatedAsia-TemperateChinaChina  Wu Zheng-yi & P. H. Raven et al., eds. 1994-. Flora of China (English edition).
2CultivatedAsia-TropicalIndian SubcontinentIndia  Padua, L. S. de et al., eds. 1999. Medicinal and poisonous plants 1. In: Faridah Hanum, I. & L. J. G. van der Maesen, eds., Plant Resources of South-East Asia (PROSEA) 12(1):430.
2CultivatedAsia-TropicalIndian SubcontinentNepal  Padua, L. S. de et al., eds. 1999. Medicinal and poisonous plants 1. In: Faridah Hanum, I. & L. J. G. van der Maesen, eds., Plant Resources of South-East Asia (PROSEA) 12(1):430.
2CultivatedAsia-TropicalIndian SubcontinentPakistan  Nasir, E. & S. I. Ali, eds. 1970-. Flora of [West] Pakistan.
2CultivatedAsia-TropicalIndo-ChinaVietnam  Padua, L. S. de et al., eds. 1999. Medicinal and poisonous plants 1. In: Faridah Hanum, I. & L. J. G. van der Maesen, eds., Plant Resources of South-East Asia (PROSEA) 12(1):430.
2CultivatedAsia-TropicalMalesiaIndonesiaJawa Padua, L. S. de et al., eds. 1999. Medicinal and poisonous plants 1. In: Faridah Hanum, I. & L. J. G. van der Maesen, eds., Plant Resources of South-East Asia (PROSEA) 12(1):430.
Native
Asia-Temperate
  • CHINA: China [Yunnan Sheng]
Asia-Tropical
  • INDIAN SUBCONTINENT: Bhutan, India, Sri Lanka, Nepal
  • INDO-CHINA: Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, Thailand, Vietnam
  • MALESIA: Indonesia [Jawa, Lesser Sunda Islands]
Cultivated
Asia-Temperate
  • CAUCASUS: Georgia
  • CHINA: China
Asia-Tropical
  • INDIAN SUBCONTINENT: India, Nepal, Pakistan
  • INDO-CHINA: Vietnam
  • MALESIA: Indonesia [Jawa]

Reference(s)
  1. Dassanayake, M. D. & F. R. Fosberg, eds. 1980-. A revised handbook to the flora of Ceylon.
  2. Grierson, A. J. C. & D. J. Long. 1984-. Flora of Bhutan including a record of plants from Sikkim.
  3. Hara, H. et al. 1978-1982. An enumeration of the flowering plants of Nepal.
  4. Hendrian & D. J. Middleton. 1999. Revision of Rauvolfia (Apocynaceae) in Malesia. Blumea 44:460-462.
  5. Nasir, E. & S. I. Ali, eds. 1970-. Flora of [West] Pakistan.
  6. Padua, L. S. de et al., eds. 1999. Medicinal and poisonous plants 1. In: Faridah Hanum, I. & L. J. G. van der Maesen, eds., Plant Resources of South-East Asia (PROSEA) 12(1):430.
  7. Smitinand, T. & K. Larsen, eds. 1970-. Flora of Thailand.
  8. Wu Zheng-yi & P. H. Raven et al., eds. 1994-. Flora of China (English edition).
Economic Uses
UsageTypeNoteReference
Medicinessource of pharmaceutical agentajmalicine, rescinnamine, & reserpinePadua, L. S. de et al., eds. 1999. Medicinal and poisonous plants 1. In: Faridah Hanum, I. & L. J. G. van der Maesen, eds., Plant Resources of South-East Asia (PROSEA) 12(1):430.
Medicinessource of pharmaceutical agentajmalicine, rescinnamine, & reserpineDuke, J. A. et al. 2002. CRC Handbook of medicinal herbs
Medicinessource of pharmaceutical agentajmalicine, rescinnamine, & reserpineMcGuffin, M., J. T. Kartesz, A. Y. Leung, & A. O. Tucker. 2000. Herbs of commerce, ed. 2 American Herbal Products Association, Silver Spring, Maryland.
Medicinessource of pharmaceutical agentajmalicine, rescinnamine, & reserpineFarnsworth, N. R. & D. D. Soejarto. 1988. Global importance of medicinal plants (unpublished draft manuscript rev. 23)
Cite as: USDA, Agricultural Research Service, National Plant Germplasm System. 2026. Germplasm Resources Information Network (GRIN Taxonomy). National Germplasm Resources Laboratory, Beltsville, Maryland.
URL: https://npgstest.ars-grin.gov/gringlobal/taxon/taxonomydetail?id=30895. Accessed 15 April 2026.