Thunbergia grandiflora

(Roxburgh) Roxburgh

Blue trumpet vine

Acanthaceae Edible: Flowers - drink, Flowers, Leaves, Vegetable 9,274 iNaturalist observations

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Summary

Thunbergia grandiflora is an evergreen vine in the family Acanthaceae. It is native to China, India, Nepal, Bangladesh, Indochina and Myanmar and widely naturalised elsewhere. Common names include Bengal clockvine, Bengal trumpet, blue skyflower, blue thunbergia, blue trumpetvine, clockvine, skyflower and skyvine.

Description

A woody vine. The stems can be 4 cm across. The young stems are hairy. It has underground runners. The leaves have leaf stalks. The leaf blades are oval and 1-2 times as long as wide. They usually have lobes spread out like fingers on a hand. The flowering clusters can be in the axils of leaves or at the ends of branches. They hang in groups 2 m long. They are light blue.

Edible Uses

The leaves are cooked as a vegetable and can be stored for 4-5 days after harvest. The flowers are fried with dry fish or used to make a tea drink.

Traditional Uses

The leaves are cooked as a vegetable and eaten. The harvested leaves can be stored for 4-5 days. The flowers are fried with dry fish. They are also used for a tea drink.

Medicinal Uses

The leaves, either on their own or in combination with the leaves of Abelmoschus moschatus and the seeds of Clausena lansium, are used as a remedy against snake bites. The petioles are removed and the juice of the leaves is used to massage the site of the bite, whilst the remaining pulp is then applied as a poultice. The dried and powdered leaves can also be used, they are moistened and applied as a poultice.

Distribution

It is a tropical plant. In Costa Rica it grows from sea level to 1,400 m altitude. In Yunnan.

Where It Grows

Africa, Asia, Australia, Caribbean, Central America, China, Costa Rica, Dominica, Dominican Republic, East Africa, Fiji, Guiana, Guianas, Guyana, Haiti, Hawaii, India, Indochina, Indonesia, Laos, Maldives, Mozambique, Myanmar, Nauru, Nigeria, Northeastern India, Pacific, Philippines, Puerto Rico, SE Asia, Sikkim, Suriname, Thailand, USA, Vietnam, West Africa, West Indies,

Cultivation

It can be grown from seed, air-layering, or cuttings of mature stems of the current year's growth.

Propagation

Seed - Cuttings

Synonyms

Flemingia grandiflora Roxburgh ex Rottler

Also Known As

Bengal trumpet vine, Blue sky flower, Bunga tunbergia, Clockvine, Dengkhakhlu, Githa, Hmab ko tshob, Hugoule, Jyrmi-khnong, Kauri lota, Khakkhu, Kokua lota, Kukua-loti, Lao gua dan, Large-flowered thunbergia, Nong nonga, Nuolonglie, Pan-ye-sut-nwe, Skyflower skyvine, Va-ko, Za kuo luo kuo

References (30)

Acevedo-Rodriguez, P., 2005, Vine and Climbing Plants of Puerto Rico and the Virgin islands. Contributions to the United States National Herbarium. Volume 51:1-483 p 25
Baro, D., Baruah, S. and Borthukar, S. K. 2015, Documentation on wild vegetables of Baksa district, BTAD (Assam). Scholars Research Library. Archives of Applied Science Research, 2015, 7 (9):19-27
Bot. Reg. 6: t. 495. 1820 (Hort. bengal. 45. 1814, nom. nudum)
Burkill, H. M., 1985, The useful plants of west tropical Africa, Vol. 1. Kew.
Cao, Y., et al, 2020, Ethnobotanical study on wild edible plants used by three trans-boundary ethnic groups in Jiangcheng County, Pu’er, Southwest China. Journal of Ethnobiology and Ethnomedicine (2020) 16:66

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