Abuta obovata
Diels
(c) Guillaume Léotard, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), uploaded by Guillaume Léotard
(c) Guillaume Léotard, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC)
What to Eat
Edible parts: Fruit mesocarp
The fruit mesocarp is edible.
Known Hazards
Where to Find It
It is a tropical plant. In Venezuela it is recorded between 1,065-1,220 m above sea level.
Amazon, Brazil, Colombia, French Guiana, Guyana, Peru, South America, Suriname, Venezuela,
How to Identify
A shrub or small tree. It grows 5 m tall. There are prickles along the stem. The leaves are twice divided and there are 8-18 pairs of pinnae. There are up to 50 pairs of pinnules on each pinnae. The flowers are yellow. They are in large clusters at the ends of branches. The pods are flattened.
How to Grow
A dioecious species, both male and female forms need to be grown if fruit and seed are required.
Medicinal Uses
The plant, part not specified, is used for treating back pain.
Notes
The Menispermaceae are mainly tropical rainforest plants. There are 32 Abuta in tropical America.
References (3)
- Johnson, M. and Colquhoun, A., 1996, Preliminary Ethnobotanical Survey of Kurupukari: An Amerindian Settlement of Central Guyana. Economic Botany, Vol. 50, No. 2, pp. 182-194
- Kew Plants of the World Online
- Roa, J. A. G. & Boada, D. S. G., 2018, Fundación para el Fortalecimiento de la Fruticultura y Plantas Alimenticias no Convencionales en Colombia.
