Taxon: Thevetia peruviana (Pers.) K. Schum.

Summary

Genus:

Thevetia

Family:

Apocynaceae

Subfamily:

Rauvolfioideae

Tribe:

Plumerieae

Nomen number:

36532

Place of publication:

H. G. A. Engler & K. A. E. Prantl, Nat. Pflanzenfam. 4(2):159. 1895

Verified:

01/23/2012 ARS Systematic Botanists.

Accessions:

9 (0 active, 0 available) in National Plant Germplasm System. (Map it)

Other conspecific taxa

Autonyms (not in current use), synonyms and invalid designations

Heterotypic Synonym(s)
Cascabela thevetia (L.) Lippold
Cerbera peruviana Pers.
Cerbera thevetia L.
Thevetia neriifolia Juss. ex A. DC.

No images

Conservation Status

Reference(s)

Acevedo-Rodríguez, P. & M. T. Strong. Flora of the West Indies (on-line resource). Note: = Cascabela thevetia
APHIS. Agricultural Risk Management System United States Department of Agriculture.
Backer, C. A. & R. C. Bakhuizen van den Brink, Jr. 1963-1968. Flora of Java.
Brako, L. & J. L. Zarucchi. 1993. Catalogue of the flowering plants and gymnosperms of Peru. Monogr. Syst. Bot. Missouri Bot. Gard. 45
Correll, D. S. & H. B. Correll. 1982. Flora of the Bahama archipelago.
Dassanayake, M. D. & F. R. Fosberg, eds. 1980-. A revised handbook to the flora of Ceylon.
Davidse, G. et al., eds. 1994. Flora mesoamericana.
Deka, D. C. et al. 2011. High quality biodiesel from yellow oleander (Thevetia peruviana) seed oil. Biomass Bioenergy 35:1-7. DOI: 10.1016/j.biombioe.2011.01.007.
Duke, J. A. et al. 2002. CRC Handbook of medicinal herbs
Encke, F. et al. 1984. Zander: Handwörterbuch der Pflanzennamen, 13. Auflage
Erhardt, W. et al. 2008. Der große Zander: Enzyklopädie der Pflanzennamen
Forzza, R. C. et al., coord. Lista de espécies da flora do Brasil (on-line resource).
Funk, V. et al. 2007. Checklist of the plants of the Guiana Shield (Venezuela: Amazonas, Bolivar, Delta Amacuro; Guyana, Surinam, French Guiana). Contr. U.S. Natl. Herb. 55:1-584.
George, A. S., ed. 1980-. Flora of Australia. Note: = Cascabela thevetia (L.) Lippold
Henderson, L. 2001. Alien weeds and invasive plants: a complete guide to declared weeds and invaders in South Africa. Plant Protection Research Institute, Handbook 12
Howard, R. 1974-1989. Flora of the lesser Antilles.
Huxley, A., ed. 1992. The new Royal Horticultural Society dictionary of gardening 4:458.
Institute of Pacific Islands Forestry. Pacific Island Ecosystems at Risk (PIER): plant threats to Pacific ecosystems (on-line resource).
Instituto de Botánica Darwinion. 2008. Flora del Conosur. Catálogo de las plantas vasculares.
Kellerman, T. S. et al. 1988. Plant poisonings and mycotoxicoses of livestock in Southern Africa Note: poisonous
Kingsbury, J. M. 1964. Poisonous plants of the United States and Canada. Note: poisonous
Krüssmann, G. 1984. Manual of cultivated broad-leaved trees and shrubs (English translation of Handbuch der Laubgehölze. 1976)
Lampe, K. F. & M. A. McCann. 1985. AMA handbook of poisonous and injurious plants Note: poisonous
Liberty Hyde Bailey Hortorium. 1976. Hortus third. A concise dictionary of plants cultivated in the United States and Canada
Liogier, H. A. & L. F. Martorell. 1982. Flora of Puerto Rico and adjacent islands: a systematic synopsis.
Llamas, K. A. 2003. Tropical flowering plants: a guide to identification and cultivation
Macbride, J. F. et al., eds. 1936-. Flora of Peru Note: 1936-1971; new ser. 1980-
Nasir, E. & S. I. Ali, eds. 1970-. Flora of [West] Pakistan.
Porcher, M. H. et al. Searchable World Wide Web Multilingual Multiscript Plant Name Database (MMPND) (on-line resource).
Rehm, S. 1994. Multilingual dictionary of agronomic plants
Royen, P. van et al. 1964-1970. Manual of the forest trees of Papua and New Guinea.
Rzedowski, J. & G. Rzedowski, eds. 1991-. Flora del Bajio y de regiones adyacentes.
Smith, R. J. Botanical beads of the world (on-line resource).
Standley, P. C. & J. A. Steyermark. 1946-1976. Flora of Guatemala.
Standley, P. C. 1920. Trees and shrubs of Mexico. Contr. U.S. Natl. Herb. 23:1-1721.
Staples, G. W. & D. R. Herbst. 1996. Nomenclatural changes affecting cultivated plants. I. Baileya 23:172. Note: = Cascabela thevetia (L.) Lippold
Stevens, W. D. et al., eds. 2001. Flora de Nicaragua. Monogr. Syst. Bot. Missouri Bot. Gard. 85(1-3). Note: = Cascabela thevetia (L.) Lippold
Steyermark, J. A. et al., eds. 1995-. Flora of the Venezuelan Guayana. Note: prob. naturalized
Wood, J. R. I. 1997. A handbook of the Yemen flora.
Wu Zheng-yi & P. H. Raven et al., eds. 1994-. Flora of China (English edition).

Common names

Language	Name	seq	Citation
English	be-still-tree	1	Llamas, K. A. 2003. Tropical flowering plants: a guide to identification and cultivation
English	luckynut	1	Wiersema, J. H. & B. León. 1999. World economic plants: a standard reference CRC Press, Boca Raton, FL.
English	yellow oleander	1	Rehm, S. 1994. Multilingual dictionary of agronomic plants
Afrikaans	geel-oleander	2	Henderson, L. 2001. Alien weeds and invasive plants: a complete guide to declared weeds and invaders in South Africa. Plant Protection Research Institute, Handbook 12
French	oléandre jaune	2	Rehm, S. 1994. Multilingual dictionary of agronomic plants
German	gelber Schellenbaum	2	Erhardt, W. et al. 2008. Der große Zander: Enzyklopädie der Pflanzennamen
German	Thevetie	2	Rehm, S. 1994. Multilingual dictionary of agronomic plants
Portuguese	loandro-amarelo	2	Rehm, S. 1994. Multilingual dictionary of agronomic plants
Spanish	adelfa amarilla	2	Rehm, S. 1994. Multilingual dictionary of agronomic plants
Spanish	cabalonga	2	Rehm, S. 1994. Multilingual dictionary of agronomic plants
Spanish	cascabel	2	Llamas, K. A. 2003. Tropical flowering plants: a guide to identification and cultivation
Spanish	chilidrón	2	Davidse, G. et al., eds. 1994. Flora mesoamericana.
Spanish	chirca	2	Rehm, S. 1994. Multilingual dictionary of agronomic plants
Swedish	tevetia	2	Aldén, B., S. Ryman, & M. Hjertson. 2012. Svensk Kulturväxtdatabas, SKUD (Swedish Cultivated and Utility Plants Database; online resource)

Distribution

order_code	Status	Continent	Subcontinent	Country	State	Note	Reference
1	Native	Northern America	Northern Mexico	Mexico	Nuevo León		Rzedowski, J. & G. Rzedowski, eds. 1991-. Flora del Bajio y de regiones adyacentes.
1	Native	Northern America	Northern Mexico	Mexico	San Luis Potosí		Rzedowski, J. & G. Rzedowski, eds. 1991-. Flora del Bajio y de regiones adyacentes.
1	Native	Northern America	Northern Mexico	Mexico	Sinaloa		Rzedowski, J. & G. Rzedowski, eds. 1991-. Flora del Bajio y de regiones adyacentes.
1	Native	Northern America	Northern Mexico	Mexico	Sonora		Rzedowski, J. & G. Rzedowski, eds. 1991-. Flora del Bajio y de regiones adyacentes.
1	Native	Northern America	Northern Mexico	Mexico	Tamaulipas		Rzedowski, J. & G. Rzedowski, eds. 1991-. Flora del Bajio y de regiones adyacentes.
1	Native	Northern America	Southern Mexico	Mexico	Campeche		Rzedowski, J. & G. Rzedowski, eds. 1991-. Flora del Bajio y de regiones adyacentes.
1	Native	Northern America	Southern Mexico	Mexico	Chiapas		Rzedowski, J. & G. Rzedowski, eds. 1991-. Flora del Bajio y de regiones adyacentes.
1	Native	Northern America	Southern Mexico	Mexico	Guanajuato		Rzedowski, J. & G. Rzedowski, eds. 1991-. Flora del Bajio y de regiones adyacentes.
1	Native	Northern America	Southern Mexico	Mexico	Guerrero		Rzedowski, J. & G. Rzedowski, eds. 1991-. Flora del Bajio y de regiones adyacentes.
1	Native	Northern America	Southern Mexico	Mexico	Hidalgo		Rzedowski, J. & G. Rzedowski, eds. 1991-. Flora del Bajio y de regiones adyacentes.
1	Native	Northern America	Southern Mexico	Mexico	Jalisco		Rzedowski, J. & G. Rzedowski, eds. 1991-. Flora del Bajio y de regiones adyacentes.
1	Native	Northern America	Southern Mexico	Mexico	México		Rzedowski, J. & G. Rzedowski, eds. 1991-. Flora del Bajio y de regiones adyacentes.
1	Native	Northern America	Southern Mexico	Mexico	Michoacán de Ocampo		Rzedowski, J. & G. Rzedowski, eds. 1991-. Flora del Bajio y de regiones adyacentes.
1	Native	Northern America	Southern Mexico	Mexico	Morelos		Rzedowski, J. & G. Rzedowski, eds. 1991-. Flora del Bajio y de regiones adyacentes.
1	Native	Northern America	Southern Mexico	Mexico	Nayarit		Rzedowski, J. & G. Rzedowski, eds. 1991-. Flora del Bajio y de regiones adyacentes.
1	Native	Northern America	Southern Mexico	Mexico	Oaxaca		Rzedowski, J. & G. Rzedowski, eds. 1991-. Flora del Bajio y de regiones adyacentes.
1	Native	Northern America	Southern Mexico	Mexico	Puebla		Rzedowski, J. & G. Rzedowski, eds. 1991-. Flora del Bajio y de regiones adyacentes.
1	Native	Northern America	Southern Mexico	Mexico	Querétaro		Rzedowski, J. & G. Rzedowski, eds. 1991-. Flora del Bajio y de regiones adyacentes.
1	Native	Northern America	Southern Mexico	Mexico	Quintana Roo		Davidse, G. et al., eds. 1994. Flora mesoamericana.
1	Native	Northern America	Southern Mexico	Mexico	Tabasco		Rzedowski, J. & G. Rzedowski, eds. 1991-. Flora del Bajio y de regiones adyacentes.
1	Native	Northern America	Southern Mexico	Mexico	Veracruz de Ignacio de la Llave		Rzedowski, J. & G. Rzedowski, eds. 1991-. Flora del Bajio y de regiones adyacentes.
1	Native	Northern America	Southern Mexico	Mexico	Yucatán		Rzedowski, J. & G. Rzedowski, eds. 1991-. Flora del Bajio y de regiones adyacentes.
1	Native	Southern America	Brazil	Brazil			Forzza, R. C. et al., coord. Lista de espécies da flora do Brasil (on-line resource).
1	Native	Southern America	Caribbean	Antigua and Barbuda			Howard, R. 1974-1989. Flora of the lesser Antilles.
1	Native	Southern America	Caribbean	Barbados			Howard, R. 1974-1989. Flora of the lesser Antilles.
1	Native	Southern America	Caribbean	Grenada			Howard, R. 1974-1989. Flora of the lesser Antilles.
1	Native	Southern America	Caribbean	Guadeloupe			Howard, R. 1974-1989. Flora of the lesser Antilles.
1	Native	Southern America	Caribbean	Martinique			Howard, R. 1974-1989. Flora of the lesser Antilles.
1	Native	Southern America	Caribbean	Montserrat			Howard, R. 1974-1989. Flora of the lesser Antilles.
1	Native	Southern America	Caribbean	Netherlands Antilles			Howard, R. 1974-1989. Flora of the lesser Antilles.
1	Native	Southern America	Caribbean	St. Kitts and Nevis			Howard, R. 1974-1989. Flora of the lesser Antilles.
1	Native	Southern America	Caribbean	St. Lucia			Howard, R. 1974-1989. Flora of the lesser Antilles.
1	Native	Southern America	Caribbean	St. Vincent and Grenadines			Howard, R. 1974-1989. Flora of the lesser Antilles.
1	Native	Southern America	Central America	Belize			Davidse, G. et al., eds. 1994. Flora mesoamericana.
1	Native	Southern America	Central America	Costa Rica			Davidse, G. et al., eds. 1994. Flora mesoamericana.
1	Native	Southern America	Central America	El Salvador			Davidse, G. et al., eds. 1994. Flora mesoamericana.
1	Native	Southern America	Central America	Guatemala			Davidse, G. et al., eds. 1994. Flora mesoamericana.
1	Native	Southern America	Central America	Honduras			Davidse, G. et al., eds. 1994. Flora mesoamericana.
1	Native	Southern America	Central America	Nicaragua			Davidse, G. et al., eds. 1994. Flora mesoamericana.
1	Native	Southern America	Central America	Panama			Davidse, G. et al., eds. 1994. Flora mesoamericana.
1	Native	Southern America	Northern South America	French Guiana			Funk, V. et al. 2007. Checklist of the plants of the Guiana Shield (Venezuela: Amazonas, Bolivar, Delta Amacuro; Guyana, Surinam, French Guiana). Contr. U.S. Natl. Herb. 55:1-584.
1	Native	Southern America	Northern South America	Guyana			Funk, V. et al. 2007. Checklist of the plants of the Guiana Shield (Venezuela: Amazonas, Bolivar, Delta Amacuro; Guyana, Surinam, French Guiana). Contr. U.S. Natl. Herb. 55:1-584.
1	Native	Southern America	Northern South America	Suriname			Funk, V. et al. 2007. Checklist of the plants of the Guiana Shield (Venezuela: Amazonas, Bolivar, Delta Amacuro; Guyana, Surinam, French Guiana). Contr. U.S. Natl. Herb. 55:1-584.
1	Native	Southern America	Northern South America	Venezuela			Steyermark, J. A. et al., eds. 1995-. Flora of the Venezuelan Guayana. Note: prob. naturalized
1	Native	Southern America	Southern South America	Paraguay			Instituto de Botánica Darwinion. 2008. Flora del Conosur. Catálogo de las plantas vasculares.
1	Native	Southern America	Western South America	Bolivia			Steyermark, J. A. et al., eds. 1995-. Flora of the Venezuelan Guayana. Note: prob. naturalized
1	Native	Southern America	Western South America	Peru	Huánuco		Brako, L. & J. L. Zarucchi. 1993. Catalogue of the flowering plants and gymnosperms of Peru. Monogr. Syst. Bot. Missouri Bot. Gard. 45
1	Native	Southern America	Western South America	Peru	San Martín		Brako, L. & J. L. Zarucchi. 1993. Catalogue of the flowering plants and gymnosperms of Peru. Monogr. Syst. Bot. Missouri Bot. Gard. 45
2	Cultivated					widely cult.
4	Naturalized	Australasia	Australia	Australia	Northern Territory		George, A. S., ed. 1980-. Flora of Australia.
4	Naturalized	Australasia	Australia	Australia	Queensland		George, A. S., ed. 1980-. Flora of Australia.
4	Naturalized	Pacific	North-Central Pacific	United States	Hawaii		Institute of Pacific Islands Forestry. Pacific Island Ecosystems at Risk (PIER): plant threats to Pacific ecosystems (on-line resource).
4	Naturalized	Pacific	South-Central Pacific	Cook Islands			Institute of Pacific Islands Forestry. Pacific Island Ecosystems at Risk (PIER): plant threats to Pacific ecosystems (on-line resource).
4	Naturalized	Pacific	South-Central Pacific	French Polynesia			Institute of Pacific Islands Forestry. Pacific Island Ecosystems at Risk (PIER): plant threats to Pacific ecosystems (on-line resource).
4	Naturalized	Pacific	Southwestern Pacific	Fiji			Institute of Pacific Islands Forestry. Pacific Island Ecosystems at Risk (PIER): plant threats to Pacific ecosystems (on-line resource).
4	Naturalized	Pacific	Southwestern Pacific	Niue			Institute of Pacific Islands Forestry. Pacific Island Ecosystems at Risk (PIER): plant threats to Pacific ecosystems (on-line resource).

Native
Northern America

NORTHERN MEXICO: Mexico [Nuevo León, San Luis Potosí, Sinaloa, Sonora, Tamaulipas]
SOUTHERN MEXICO: Mexico [Campeche, Chiapas, Guanajuato, Guerrero, Hidalgo, Jalisco, México, Michoacán de Ocampo, Morelos, Nayarit, Oaxaca, Puebla, Querétaro, Quintana Roo, Tabasco, Veracruz de Ignacio de la Llave, Yucatán]

Southern America

CARIBBEAN: Netherlands Antilles, Antigua and Barbuda, Barbados, Guadeloupe, Grenada, St. Kitts and Nevis, St. Lucia, Montserrat, Martinique, St. Vincent and Grenadines
CENTRAL AMERICA: Belize, Costa Rica, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, Panama, El Salvador
NORTHERN SOUTH AMERICA: French Guiana, Guyana, Suriname, Venezuela
BRAZIL: Brazil
WESTERN SOUTH AMERICA: Bolivia, Peru [Huánuco, San Martín]
SOUTHERN SOUTH AMERICA: Paraguay

Cultivated (widely cult.)
Naturalized
Australasia

AUSTRALIA: Australia [Queensland, Northern Territory]

Pacific

NORTH-CENTRAL PACIFIC: United States [Hawaii]
SOUTH-CENTRAL PACIFIC: Cook Islands, French Polynesia
SOUTHWESTERN PACIFIC: Fiji, Niue

Reference(s)

Brako, L. & J. L. Zarucchi. 1993. Catalogue of the flowering plants and gymnosperms of Peru. Monogr. Syst. Bot. Missouri Bot. Gard. 45
Davidse, G. et al., eds. 1994. Flora mesoamericana.
Forzza, R. C. et al., coord. Lista de espécies da flora do Brasil (on-line resource).
Funk, V. et al. 2007. Checklist of the plants of the Guiana Shield (Venezuela: Amazonas, Bolivar, Delta Amacuro; Guyana, Surinam, French Guiana). Contr. U.S. Natl. Herb. 55:1-584.
George, A. S., ed. 1980-. Flora of Australia.
Howard, R. 1974-1989. Flora of the lesser Antilles.
Institute of Pacific Islands Forestry. Pacific Island Ecosystems at Risk (PIER): plant threats to Pacific ecosystems (on-line resource).
Instituto de Botánica Darwinion. 2008. Flora del Conosur. Catálogo de las plantas vasculares.
Rzedowski, J. & G. Rzedowski, eds. 1991-. Flora del Bajio y de regiones adyacentes.
Steyermark, J. A. et al., eds. 1995-. Flora of the Venezuelan Guayana. Note: prob. naturalized

Economic Uses

Usage	Type	Note	Reference
Environmental	ornamental		Huxley, A., ed. 1992. The new Royal Horticultural Society dictionary of gardening 4:458.
Environmental	ornamental		Krüssmann, G. 1984. Manual of cultivated broad-leaved trees and shrubs (English translation of Handbuch der Laubgehölze. 1976)
Fuels	petroleum substitute/alcohol	potential, for biodiesel	Deka, D. C. et al. 2011. High quality biodiesel from yellow oleander (Thevetia peruviana) seed oil. Biomass Bioenergy 35:1-7. DOI: 10.1016/j.biombioe.2011.01.007.
Materials	beads		Smith, R. J. Botanical beads of the world (on-line resource).
Medicines	folklore		Duke, J. A. et al. 2002. CRC Handbook of medicinal herbs
Vertebrate poisons	mammals		Kingsbury, J. M. 1964. Poisonous plants of the United States and Canada. Note: poisonous
Vertebrate poisons	mammals		Kellerman, T. S. et al. 1988. Plant poisonings and mycotoxicoses of livestock in Southern Africa Note: poisonous
Vertebrate poisons	mammals		Lampe, K. F. & M. A. McCann. 1985. AMA handbook of poisonous and injurious plants Note: poisonous
Weed			Henderson, L. 2001. Alien weeds and invasive plants: a complete guide to declared weeds and invaders in South Africa. Plant Protection Research Institute, Handbook 12

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=36532. Accessed 15 April 2026.