Aspalathus cordata

(L.) R. Dahlgren

Fabaceae Edible: Leaves - tea 1,519 iNaturalist observations

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Description

A low shrub. It grows 40-80 cm tall. It is a rigid plant and branches freely. The leaves are simple and sword shaped. The flowers are in groups of 4-8 at the ends of branches.

Edible Uses

The leaves are used to make tea drinks.

Traditional Uses

The leaves are used for tea drinks.

This uses section is brief — help expand it

Distribution

It is a Mediterranean climate or subtropical. It grows on sandy slopes.

Where It Grows

Africa, South Africa, Southern Africa,

Production

In South Africa plants flower August to December.

Synonyms

Borbonia cordata Linn.

References (5)

Hedrick, U.P., 1919, (Ed.), Sturtevant's edible plants of the world. p 111
Opera Bot. 9(1):275. 1963
Ruiters-Welcome, A. K., 2019, Food plants of southern Africa. Ph.D. thesis. Univ. of Johannesburg p 55
van Wyk, Ben-Erik, 2019, The diversity and multiple uses of southern African legumes. Australian Systematic Botany, 2019, 32, 519–546
Welcome, A. K. & Van Wyk, B.-E., 2019, An inventory and analysis of the food plants of southern Africa. South African Journal of Botany 122 (2019) 136–179