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Camptotheca acuminata
Also called Cancer Tree, Chinese Happy Tree, Happy Tree, Tree Of Life
Camptotheca acuminata is a deciduous tree from southern China and northern Vietnam, grown in warm climates for shade and as a source of the anticancer compound camptothecin. It needs a warm, sheltered site with good drainage.
Camptotheca acuminata is a species of tree in the genus Camptotheca that is native to north Vietnam and southern China. It is also cultivated in the southern United States.
A eudicot, it is a flowering deciduous tree with light gray bark. It can grow to a height of 20 metres (66 ft). Its large, papery leaves are somewhat oval in shape, usually 12 to 28 cm (5 to 10 in) long and 6 to 12 cm (2 to 5 in) wide. The flowers, which bloom from May through July, produce a gray-brown fruit with one seed in September.
Camptotheca acuminata is a source of camptothecin chemicals, which have been tested for potential use as treatments for cancer and HIV. The modern chemotherapy drugs topotecan and irinotecan are derived from it, though now the molecules are produced in a lab environment rather than extracted from the leaves and bark of the tree. Because of this, it is sometimes called the "cancer tree".
Text excerpted from the Wikipedia article Camptotheca acuminata by its contributors, under CC BY-SA 4.0; the excerpts and the care summary drawn from them are shared under the same licence.
The care summary was written by AI (Claude, Anthropic) from the sources on this page, with general growing knowledge where they are silent. Check before relying on it.
Life form, climate and native range: World Checklist of Vascular Plants, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew (CC BY 3.0), reformatted; see Plants of the World Online.
