Cyperus alternifolius

Chesa, Chetsa

Cyperaceae

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What to Eat

Edible parts: Plant - salt

The plants are collected, dried, and burnt, then used in a solution to cook other leaves and vegetables.

Where to Find It

It is a tropical plant. It grows in wet and marshy places in the hills in Malawi. It needs a partly shaded position. It is damaged by drought or frost. It is highly salt tolerant.

Africa*, Asia, Australia, Central America, East Africa, El Salvador, Ethiopia, Guam, Guatemala, Indochina, Laos, Madagascar*, Malawi, Mauritius, Mozambique, Nauru, Niue, Philippines, SE Asia, Slovenia, St Helena, Taiwan, United Arab Emirates, UAE,

Countries: United Arab Emirates, Afghanistan, Armenia, Angola, Australia, Azerbaijan, Bangladesh, Burkina Faso, Bahrain, Burundi, Benin, Brunei, Bhutan, Botswana, Belize, Congo (DRC), Central African Republic, Congo (Republic), Cote d'Ivoire, Cameroon, China, Costa Rica, Cape Verde, Djibouti, Algeria, Egypt, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Gabon, Georgia, Ghana, Gambia, Guinea, Equatorial Guinea, Guatemala, Guinea-Bissau, Honduras, Indonesia, Israel, India, Iraq, Iran, Jordan, Japan, Kenya, Kyrgyzstan, Cambodia, Comoros, North Korea, South Korea, Kuwait, Kazakhstan, Laos, Lebanon, Sri Lanka, Liberia, Lesotho, Libya, Morocco, Madagascar, Mali, Myanmar, Mongolia, Mauritania, Mauritius, Maldives, Malawi, Malaysia, Mozambique, Namibia, Niger, Nigeria, Nicaragua, Nepal, Nauru, Niue, Oman, Panama, Philippines, Pakistan, Qatar, Rwanda, Saudi Arabia, Seychelles, Sudan, Singapore, Slovenia, Sierra Leone, Senegal, Somalia, South Sudan, Sao Tome & Principe, El Salvador, Syria, Eswatini, Chad, Togo, Thailand, Tajikistan, Timor-Leste, Turkmenistan, Tunisia, Turkey, Taiwan, Tanzania, Uganda, Uzbekistan, Vietnam, Yemen, South Africa, Zambia, Zimbabwe

How to Identify

A leafless sedge. The stems are green and up to 1 m tall. They are slender and triangle shaped. They have ribs. The plant spreads 1 m wide. The leaves are sheaths only. The flowers are in spikes and are yellow or rust coloured. They are surrounded by 12 curving leaf-like bracts that hang down. These form a ring at the top.

How to Grow

Plants can be grown by seed or by division.

Medicinal Uses

The rhizome is given to children as a remedy for stomach ache. The plant (part not specified) is used as a treatment for malarial fevers, The dried ash of the plant is applied to fresh wounds as a disinfectant. The dried plant is reduced to an ash, this is then soaked in water and the solids filtered off. The water is then evaporated and the residual salt is applied to fresh wounds as a disinfectant.

Other Uses

The culms and leaves are used in weaving for making mats, baskets, fans and paintbrushes.

Wikipedia

Source ↗

Cyperus alternifolius, the umbrella papyrus, umbrella sedge or umbrella palm, is a grass-like plant in the large genus Cyperus of the sedge family Cyperaceae. The plant is native to West Africa, Madagascar and the Arabian Peninsula, but widely distributed throughout the world. It has gained the Royal Horticultural Society's Award of Garden Merit. The subspecies Cyperus alternifolius ssp. flabelliformis is also known as Cyperus involucratus Rottb..

Notes

There are about 600 Cyperus species. In Slovenia possibly in a hot house.

Names & Synonyms

Namen, Premenjalnolistna ostrica, Zozoro

Cyperus involucratus Rottb.Cyperus flabelliformis Rottb.Cyperus alternifolius L. subsp. flabelliformis (Rottb.) Kuk

References (6)

Bodkin, F., 1991, Encyclopedia Botanica. Cornstalk publishing, p 314
Karim, F. M. & Dakheel, A, J., 2006, Salt-tolerant plants of the United Arab Emirates. 2006. International Center for Biosaline Agriculture, Dubai, UAE. p 87
Mant. pl. 1:28. 1767
Simpson, D. A. & Inglis, C. A., 2001, Cyperaceae of Economic, Ethnobotanical and Horticultural Importance: A checklist. Kew Bulletin Vol. 56, No. 2 (2001), pp. 257-360
Standley, P. & Steyermark, J., 1958, Flora of Guatemala. Fieldiana: Botany, Volume 24 part 1 p 117
Williamson, J., 2005, Useful Plants of Malawi. 3rd. Edition. Mdadzi Book Trust. p 92