Jatropha has many uses in today’s world. Each part of the plant is useful in some ways. Even the seed cake produced as a by-product is used as an excellent organic fertilizer. Some parts of the plant are used for medical purposes. In short, all the parts of the Jatropha plant can be used or sold.

Here are some of the uses of Jatropha plant:

• The non-edible vegetable oil extracted from the Jatropha plant can be used as an alternative to the diesel oil. The Jatropha oil has an advantageous physicochemical and their characteristic is equal to diesel. So cars can use this oil with little change in their design.
• The oil can be used as an illuminate without refining.
• The Jatropha oil burns with clear free smoke and flame.
• Because of its high saponification, the oil is used to make soap in some parts of the world.
• Jatrophine an alkaloid material is present in the latex of Jatropha which is assumed to have anti-cancerous properties.
• It is used on the domestic livestock for skin diseases, sore and rheumatism.
• The tender wing of the Jatropha plant is used for cleaning.
• The juice of the leaf is used for piles as an external application.
• The roots are believed to act as an antidote for snake bites.
• A dark blue dye is extracted from the bark of Jatropha. This dye is used as a coloring matter for clothes, fishing nets, and lines.
• Jatropha oil cake is used as organic manure since it is rich in potassium, phosphorus, and nitrogen.
• Silkworms consume the leaves of the Jatropha leaves for their diet.
• Jatropha oil is used as a lubricant for machinery and is also used to soften the leather.

Apart from the above uses the main use of the Jatropha land is that it turns the wasteland into money-making one. Thus increasing the income and lessening the poverty for women and children of small farmer families.

Other Uses of Jatropha

Seeds

• Seeds are used to produce insecticides.
• Jatropha seed is used as a medicine for constipation.
• Oil extracted from the Jatropha plant is used as biofuel.

Oil

• The oil is used in torches and lanterns as it burns with clean free smoke.
• The oil is used to soften the leather.
• Used as a lubricant in machinery.
• Also used for making soap.
• Because of the excellent combination of potassium, phosphorous and nitrogen, the Jatropha oil cake is used as organic manure.
  

Plant

• Used to fight against skin diseases, rheumatism and as a curative for sores on domestic livestock.
• Dark blue dye from the bark is used for coloring clothes and fishnets.
  

Leaves and Twigs

• Leaves of Jatropha are used as a massage material for strained muscles.
• It is used as a brewed tea to combat malaria.
• Jatropha plant twigs are used to clean the teeth.
• The young leaves of Jatropha can be safely eaten by steaming them or cooking.
• Powdered Jatropha leaves are applied to the horse’s eyes to get rid of the flies since hydrogen cyanide is present in the leaves.
  

Flowers

• Because of HCN, the flowers of the Jatropha is listed as a honey plant.

Nuts

• Used as a contraceptive.

Roots

• Root ashes are used as a substitute for slat since they contain HCN and Rotenone.

Bark

• Bark of Jatropha is used as a fish poison.

Latex

• Strongly suppresses the mosaic viruses.

Shrub

• Shrubs of Jatropha act as a host for the lac insects.
• It is also used for controlling erosion.

Apart from the uses, the Jatropha plant has many advantages. To see the complete list of Jatropha advantages refer to Advantages of Jatropha.

(edited 26-Nov-2019)