Cyperus grandibulbosus — Edible Plant Database

What to Eat

Edible parts: Root, Bulbs

Rhizome - raw or cooked as a vegetable. Mainly seen as a food for times when nothing better is available. (As Cyperus giolii) We have no specific information for this species, but it is said that the inner base of the young stems of all species in this genus can be eaten raw, and make an excellent survival food in times of need.

Where to Find It

It is a tropical plant. It can grow in arid places.

Africa, East Africa, Kenya, Somalia,

Countries: Angola, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Benin, Botswana, Congo (DRC), Central African Republic, Congo (Republic), Cote d'Ivoire, Cameroon, Cape Verde, Djibouti, Algeria, Egypt, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Gabon, Ghana, Gambia, Guinea, Equatorial Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Kenya, Comoros, Liberia, Lesotho, Libya, Morocco, Madagascar, Mali, Mauritania, Mauritius, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, Niger, Nigeria, Rwanda, Seychelles, Sudan, Sierra Leone, Senegal, Somalia, South Sudan, Sao Tome & Principe, Eswatini, Chad, Togo, Tunisia, Tanzania, Uganda, South Africa, Zambia, Zimbabwe

How to Identify

A sedge of the Cyperaceae family found in tropical arid regions. It is used as a famine food.

How to Grow

Often found on seasonally wet, sandy soils in the wild.

Wikipedia

Source ↗

Cyperus grandibulbosus is a species of sedge that is endemic to parts of eastern Africa. The species was first formally described by the botanist Charles Baron Clarke in 1901.

Other Information

It is a famine food.

Names & Synonyms

Cyperus giolii Chiov.

References (2)

Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew (1999). Survey of Economic Plants for Arid and Semi-Arid Lands (SEPASAL) database. Published on the Internet; http://www.rbgkew.org.uk/ceb/sepasal/internet [Accessed 16th April 2011]
World Checklist of Useful Plant Species 2020. Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew