Gouania longispicata
Engl.
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(c) Botanica, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC)
What to Eat
Edible parts: Leaves
The leaves are edible.
Where to Find It
It is a tropical plant. It grows on the edges of forests. In Zimbabwe it grows between 700-1,650 m above sea level.
Africa, Burundi, Central Africa, Congo, Côte d'Ivoire, East Africa, Ethiopia, Ivory Coast, Malawi, Mozambique, Nigeria, Rwanda, Sierra Leone, Southern Africa, Sudan, Tanzania, Uganda, West Africa, Zimbabwe,
How to Identify
A shrub that lies along the ground or a liane. It can climb 20 m high. It has coiled tendrils. It scrambles over other vegetation. The leaves are oval. The veins are easy to see. There are fine teeth along the edge. There are many flowers along a stalk. The flowers are creamy-white. The fruit are fleshy and 6 mm long by 11 mm wide. They have 3 wings.
Notes
There are about 20 Gouania species. It is used in medicine.
Names & Synonyms
References (4)
- Burkill, H. M., 1985, The useful plants of west tropical Africa, Vol. 4. Kew.
- von Katja Rembold, 2011, Conservation status of the vascular plants in East African rain forests. Dissertation Universitat Koblenz-Landau p 168
- White, F., Dowsett-Lemaire, F. and Chapman, J. D., 2001, Evergreen Forest Flora of Malawi. Kew. p 443
- World Checklist of Useful Plant Species 2020. Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew
