The ornamental Jatropha integerrima (synonym: J. panduraefolia, J. hastata; common name: Spicy Jatropha, Coral Plant, Peregrina) from the Euphorbiaceae Family has always been one of my favourite tall shrubs because of its abundant vibrant scarlet flowers.I like to let it grow into a small tree and pair it up with some other lower shrubs in a landscape. This lobe-leaved or what I call spear-leaved Jatropha is even more attractive than the usual variety. However, of late, I realized this shrub appears to be more susceptible to mealy bugs infestation. In fact, I lost quite a few big ones at the Car Park Garden quite some time ago.
I think we should harvest the ripe seeds and try to grow them and hopefully there will be a more resistant strain amongst them against the pesky pest. 2 links are below for reference:
