Glossonema varians
(Stocks) Benth. ex Hook.f.
Glossonema, Yaradat al attar
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Description
A herb that keeps growing from year to year. It grows 5-20 cm high. The stems and leaves are greyish-green and hairy. The leaves are oval shaped and wavy along the edge. They have leaf stalks and are alternate. The plant has milk like sap. The flowers are small and yellow and in clusters in the axils of the leaves. The fruit are oval and covered with soft spines. The seeds are attached to hairs.
Edible Uses
The young fruit (follicles) are eaten raw and are enjoyed by local populations. The leaves are also edible.
Traditional Uses
The follicles or small sacs are eaten raw. It is the young fruit that are eaten.
This uses section is brief — help expand it
Medicinal Uses
Traditional uses indicate medicinal applications, though specific uses are not detailed in available data.
Distribution
It is a temperate to Mediterranean plant. In Bahrain it grows in gravelly and stony soils. It can grow in arid regions.
Where It Grows
Asia, Bahrain, India, Iran, Mediterranean, Middle East, Oman, Pakistan, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Yemen,
Other Information
The fruit are enjoyed.
Notes
Also put in the family Asclepiadaceae.
Synonyms
Also Known As
Antar, Garawah, Itr, Kabush, Kobash, Kubbesh, Kurresh, Qumredh
References (9)
- Al-Fatimi, M. A., Wild Edible Plants Traditionally Collected and Used in Southern Yemen. Research Square. University of Aden. p 19
- Ambasta, S.P. (Ed.), 2000, The Useful Plants of India. CSIR India. p 239
- Flora of Pakistan.
- Mandaville, J. P., 2004, Bedouin ethnobotany: Plant concepts and plant use in a desert pastoral world. PhD thesis University of Arizona. p 163
- Martin, F.W. & Ruberte, R.M., 1979, Edible Leaves of the Tropics. Antillian College Press, Mayaguez, Puerto Rico. p 177
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- Miller, A. G., Morris, M. & Stuart-Smith, S., 1988, Plants of Dhofar. The Southern Region of Oman, Traditional, Economic and Medicinal Uses. Sultanate of Oman. p 44
- Phillips, D.C., 1988, Wild Flowers of Bahrain. A Field Guide to Herbs, Shrubs, and Trees. Privately published. p 134
- Rizk, A. M., et al, 1990, Constituents of plants growing in Qatar. Part XIX. Falvenoids of Glossonema edule N. E. Br.. Plant Foods for Human Nutrition. 40:1-3
- World Checklist of Useful Plant Species 2020. Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew
