Talinum tenuissimum
Dinter
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(c) Bart Wursten, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), uploaded by Bart Wursten
iNaturalist· cc-by-nc
(c) Troos van der Merwe, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), uploaded by Troos van der Merwe
Description
A herb or small shrub. It is slender and erect. It grows 40 cm high. The leaves are narrow. They are 2 cm long by 2 mm wide. The flowers are at the ends of branches. The fruit are surrounded by 4-5 leaves that bend backwards.
Edible Uses
Leaves - raw or cooked. Crisp and juicy, they are also eaten to rellieve thirst. The leaves are often pounded and mixed with other leaves and corms. The stems are considered to be unpalatable and are not eaten.
Traditional Uses
The leaves are eaten raw.
This uses section is brief — help expand it
Medicinal Uses
A decoction of the roots is used in the treatment of heart ailments.
Distribution
It is a subtropical plant. It grows in dry sandy soils. It can grow in arid places.
Where It Grows
Africa, Botswana, East Africa, Eswatini, Mozambique, South Africa, Southern Africa, Swaziland, Tanzania, Zambia, Zimbabwe,
Cultivation
Prefers a sunny position. Requires a well-drained soil. Found in the wild in sandy soils.
Notes
Also put in the family Portulacaceae.
Synonyms
Also Known As
Godimega, Mojaputi, Muerere, Mungulua, Murerere
References (9)
- Grubben, G. J. H. and Denton, O. A. (eds), 2004, Plant Resources of Tropical Africa 2. Vegetables. PROTA, Wageningen, Netherlands. p 518
- Maguire, 1978,
- Peters, C. R., O'Brien, E. M., and Drummond, R.B., 1992, Edible Wild plants of Sub-saharan Africa. Kew. p 164
- Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew (1999). Survey of Economic Plants for Arid and Semi-Arid Lands (SEPASAL) database. Published on the Internet; http://www.rbgkew.org.uk/ceb/sepasal/internet [Accessed 6th June 2011]
- Ruiters-Welcome, A. K., 2019, Food plants of southern Africa. Ph.D. thesis. Univ. of Johannesburg p 91
Show all 9 references Hide references
- Swaziland's Flora Database http://www.sntc.org.sz/flora
- Tanaka, 1980,
- 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
- World Checklist of Useful Plant Species 2020. Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew
