Glossary
Mitragyna speciosa
Updated:
The botanical name of the kratom tree, native to Southeast Asia. Statutes define kratom by it: Virginia's code says kratom means any part of the leaf of the plant Mitragyna speciosa or any extract thereof. The leaf and its principal alkaloid, mitragynine, are not federally controlled.
Mitragyna speciosa is the tree whose leaves are the raw material for every kratom product. Legal definitions begin with it: Virginia's statute says kratom "means any part of the leaf of the plant Mitragyna speciosa or any extract thereof" (Va. Code § 59.1-200); Tennessee's 2026 ban reaches "any part of the Mitragyna speciosa plant" containing its named alkaloids; Ohio's rule separates the plant "in its natural, vegetative form" from its "resinous extractives."
The plant is not a federally controlled substance. DEA's October 2026 notice proposes control of two of its derivatives, 7-hydroxymitragynine and mitragynine pseudoindoxyl, above a threshold, and does not propose to schedule the plant or mitragynine (91 FR 65370).
Sources
- Va. Code § 59.1-200 (definition of kratom) Code of Virginia (accessed 2026-10-20)
- 91 FR 65370, notice of intent (October 14, 2026) Federal Register via GovInfo (accessed 2026-10-20)