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Eriosema rhynchosioides

Baker

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Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew

gbif· cc-by-nc-sa

MBG

gbif· cc-by-nc-sa

MBG

Description

A perennial ground-lying herb of the legume family with a rootstock of narrow tubers. It produces several hairy stems up to 70 cm long with trifoliate leaves and clusters of yellow flowers tinged with red inside, followed by small pods containing pale brown seeds.

Where It Grows

Tubers, Root,

Other Information

Fabaceae

Notes

A herb that lies along the ground and keeps growing from year to year. There is a rootstock of several narrow tubers. These produce several stems that have a few branches. The tubers are 7 cm long by 1.2 cm wide. The stems are 70 cm long. They are hairy and have long internodes. The leaves have 3 leaflets and are 1-6 cm long by 1-3 cm wide. They are narrowly oval and are rounded at the base. The veins are raised underneath and are hairy. There can be 1-20 flowers in a short cluster. The standard is yellow and tinged with red inside. The fruit is a por 10-16 mm long by 7-9 mm wide. The seeds are pale brown with dark marks. The seeds are about 5 mm long by 2 mm wide.

Synonyms

Eriosema terniflorum Hiern ex Baker f.Eriosema welwitschii Hiern. ex Baker f.

Also Known As

Gwera, Gweradembo

References (5)

  • Fowler, D. G., 2007, Zambian Plants: Their Vernacular Names and Uses. Kew. p 81
  • J. Linn. Soc., Bot. 15:94. 1876
  • Peters, C. R., O'Brien, E. M., and Drummond, R.B., 1992, Edible Wild plants of Sub-saharan Africa. Kew. p 134
  • Tredgold, M. H., 1986, Food Plants of Zimbabwe. Mambo Press. p 66
  • Wild, 1975,

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