Family: Rubiaceae

Origin, Description & Uses
Mitragyna speciosa (kratom) is a tropical evergreen tree native to southern Indo-China through New Guinea. It typically grows in warm, humid lowland forests and can reach medium to large size, with glossy green leaves and a straight trunk. In its native range, the leaves have long been used in traditional practices for their stimulant and pain-relieving properties, often chewed or brewed as tea. Today, kratom is also cultivated in some tropical regions for ethnobotanical and research purposes.

Risks & Threats
While Mitragyna speciosa is not widely considered invasive in most regions where it is cultivated, it has traits that could allow it to spread in suitable tropical climates if not managed carefully. In some environments, introduced populations may have the potential to naturalize in disturbed lowland areas. Additionally, its psychoactive properties have raised public health and regulatory concerns in various countries due to risks of dependence and misuse. In Hawaiʻi, it should be monitored if cultivated, and planting in natural or semi-natural areas is generally discouraged to prevent unintended spread.

High Risk Traits:

• Produces viable seed
  
• Hybridizes naturally
  
• Propagules dispersed intentionally by people
  
• Propagules adapted to wind dispersal
  
• Propagules water-dispersed (via streams/swamp forest)
  
• Tolerates shade at some life stage
  
• Tolerates wide range of soil conditions
  
• Host for recognized pests and pathogens (attracts pests indoors/outdoors)
  
• Toxic to animals (unknown per WRA, but human toxicity noted)
  
• Toxic to humans (psychoactive, used as drug; potential allergies not indicated)
  
• Unpalatable to grazing animals (unknown per WRA, but traditional use suggests consumption)

Low Risk Traits:

• Not naturalized outside native range
  
• No evidence of weediness (garden, agricultural, or environmental)
  
• No congeneric weeds
  
• No spines, thorns, or burrs
  
• No fire hazard
  
• No vegetative fragmentation (though cuttings possible)
  
• Not dispersed unintentionally, as produce contaminant, by birds, or externally by animals
  
• No evidence of substantial reproductive failure in native habitat