Adenia heterophylla

(Blume) Koord.

Lacewing Vine

Passifloraceae Edible: Fruit, Seeds, Caution Potential hazards — see below 85 iNaturalist observations

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Summary

Adenia heterophylla, commonly known in Australia as the lacewing vine, is a climbing plant in the family Passifloraceae. It has a broad distribution spanning the equator, from the south eastern corner of China, through Indochina and Malesia, to northern Australia. In Australia it serves as a food plant for larvae of the glasswing, red lacewing and cruiser butterflies.

Description

A slender climber. It grows to 20-30 m long. The stem is square. The leaves are heart shaped tapering to the tip. They are bright green and shiny. There are a few teeth along the edge of the leaf. The leaf is 10-15 cm long by 5-10 cm wide. They have 3 pairs of side veins and a pair of glands at the base of the leaf blade. The plant has long tendrils with a thick hook at the end. The flowers are of one sex but male and female flowers occur on the same plant. The male flower clusters has up to 40 flowers. The female has 1-4 flowers. The flowers are small, green and 0.8 cm across. The fruit is a capsule and narrows towards both ends. It hangs from the vine. It is bright red and turns purple. The fruit is 8 cm long by 3 cm wide. It splits into 3. There are many seeds and they are covered with a white pulp. They occur in rows and are grey.

Edible Uses

The ripe fruit is eaten whole, including the skin and seeds, which contain white pulp covering grey seeds arranged in rows.

Traditional Uses

The fruit is eaten when ripe. (The whole fruit including skin and seeds.) The seeds inhibit trypsin unless heated. CAUTION: Most Adenia are poisonous.

Known Hazards

Seeds inhibit trypsin unless heated; most Adenia species are poisonous, and this species should be approached with caution.

Distribution

It is a tropical plant. It occurs in low hills in rainforest and monsoon scrub. In tropical Queensland it grows from sea level to 300 m altitude. It prefers semi shade. It is very sensitive to frost. In XTBG Yunnan.

Where It Grows

Andamans, Asia, Australia, Cambodia, China, India, Indochina, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Pacific, Papua New Guinea, PNG, Philippines, Philippines, SE Asia, Solomon Islands, Thailand, Vietnam,

Cultivation

It can be grown from seed. It may be best to ferment the seeds inside the fruit before planting. Stem cuttings can be used. Plants need regular pruning because they grow vigorously.

Other Information

It is not known if it is used for food in Papua New Guinea.

Notes

The leaves are favourites for some attractive butterflies. There are 95 Adenia species. They are common in the semiarid regions of Africa.

Synonyms

Adenia cardiocarpa Koord.Adenia parviflora C. CussetModecca populifoliaPassiflora parviflora Blancoand others

References (22)

Ambasta S.P. (Ed.), 2000, The Useful Plants of India. CSIR India. p 14
Arora, R. K., 2014, Diversity in Underutilized Plant Species - An Asia-Pacific Perspective. Bioversity International. p 56
Borrell, O.W., 1989, An Annotated Checklist of the Flora of Kairiru Island, New Guinea. Marcellin College, Victoria Australia. p 117, 209
Cooper, W. and Cooper, W., 2004, Fruits of the Australian Tropical Rainforest. Nokomis Editions, Victoria, Australia. p 390
de Wilde, 1972, Passifloraceae, Flora Malesiana, Ser. 1. Vol. 7 (2) p 424

Show all 22 references

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Jones, D.L. & Gray, B., 1977, Australian Climbing Plants. Reed. p 73
Jones D, L, 1986, Ornamental Rainforest Plants in Australia, Reed Books, p 283
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Plants of Papua New Guinea LAE herbarium record
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Yunupinu Banjgul, Laklak Yunupinu-Marika, et al. 1995, Rirratjinu Ethnobotany: Aboriginal Plant Use from Yirrkala, Arnhem Land, Australia. Northern Territory Botanical Bulletin No 21. Parks and Wildlife Commission of the Northern Territory. p 16