Pentarrhinum abyssinicum
Decne.
African heartvine
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iNaturalist· cc0
no rights reserved
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(c) Linda Loffler, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC)
Description
A climbing herb. It produces strongly branched stems each year. These grow 2-2.5 m long from the roots. The stems lie along the ground and are twining.
Edible Uses
The leaves and fruit are eaten and the plant is commonly used as food.
Medicinal Uses
The plant is used in medicine.
Distribution
It is a tropical plant. It grows in open woodland and on the edges of forests. It grows between 1,000-2,000 m above sea level.
Where It Grows
Africa, Angola, Burundi, Cameroon, Congo DR, East Africa, Eswatini, Ethiopia, Kenya, Malawi, Namibia, Rwanda, South Africa, Southern Africa, Swaziland, Tanzania, Zambia, Zimbabwe,
Other Information
It is commonly used as a food.
Notes
There are now considered to be only 2 Pentarrhinum species. Also put in the family Asclepiadaceae. It is used in medicine.
Also Known As
Umdzandzabuka
References (5)
- East African Herbarium notes, 1981,
- Fowler, D. G., 2007, Zambian Plants: Their Vernacular Names and Uses. Kew. p 76
- Long, C., 2005, Swaziland's Flora - siSwati names and Uses http://www.sntc.org.sz/flora/
- Peters, C. R., O'Brien, E. M., and Drummond, R.B., 1992, Edible Wild plants of Sub-saharan Africa. Kew. p 65
- White, F., Dowsett-Lemaire, F. and Chapman, J. D., 2001, Evergreen Forest Flora of Malawi. Kew. p 163 (subsp. angolense)
