Vitis heyneana
Roem. & Schult.
Chinese wild grape
(c) 李博恒, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC)
Wikimedia Commons - Qwert1234
Wikimedia Commons - Krzysztof Ziarnek, Kenraiz
What to Eat
Edible parts: Fruit, Roots, Stem - drink, Shoots
The fruit are eaten fresh. The roots are cooked by boiling and used in curries. The stem yields a watery sap that is drunk. Young shoots are also edible.
Dangerous Lookalikes
This plant can be confused with the following toxic species. Always verify identification carefully before consuming any wild plant.
Canadian Moonseed: No tendrils, single crescent/moon-shaped seed, leaf stem attaches to underside of leaf.
Chinese wild grape: Vine with tendrils, round seeds, leaf stem at edge of leaf, bark that peels.
Where to Find It
It is a subtropical plant. It grows from sea level to 3,200 m above sea level.
Asia, Bangladesh, Bhutan, China, Himalayas, India, Indochina, Korea, Northeastern India, Pakistan, SE Asia,
How to Identify
A climbing vine. The small branches have ridges along them. The tendrils are divided. The leaves are simple and broadly oval or heart shaped. The flower panicles are opposite the leaves and are 4-14 cm long. The flowers are yellowish green. The fruit is a purple black berry.
Medicinal Uses
The roots are traditionally used in curries and the stem sap is consumed as a drink.
Wikipedia
Source ↗Vitis heyneana is a species of climbing vine in the grape family endemic to Asia. It can be found in shrubby or forested areas, from almost sea-level, to 3200 meters above. It has globose berries (10–13 mm diam.) that are purple to almost black.
Names & Synonyms
Asoja, Dumba, Gedar kwar, Gode lata, Jnagli loosh, Purain
References (10)
- Encyclopedia of Life
- Khan, A. H., et al, 2023, Traditional foraging for ecological transition? Wild food ethnobotany among three ethnic groups in the highlands of the eastern Hindukush, North Pakistan. Journal of Ethnobiology and Ethnomedicine 19:9
- Misra, R. C., et al, 2013, Genetic resources of wild tuberous food plants traditionally used in Similipal Biosphere Reserve, Odisha, India. Genetic Resources and Crop Evolution. Vol. 60 No. 2. Springer
- Pan, X, J., et al, 2014, In vitro conservation of native Chinese wild grape (Vitis heyneana Roem. & Schult) by slow growth culture. Vitis 53 (4), 207–214 (2014)
- Parmar, C., & Kaushel, M. K., 1982, In Wild Fruits. Kalyani Publishers, New Delhi, India. p 95 (As Vitis lanata)
- Rashid, M. H., et al, 2013, Inventory of Threatened Plants of Bangladesh and their Conservation Management. International Journal of Environment. Vol. 3 No. 1 p 160
- Wang, J., et al, 2020, An ethnobotanical survey of wild edible plants used by the Yi people of Liangshan Prefecture, Sichuan Province, China. Journal of Ethnobiology and Ethnomedicine 16:10 p 9
- Wiersema, J. H. & Leon, B., 2013, World Economic Plants. A Standard Reference CRC Press. 2nd Ed. p 725
- Wild edible plants of Himachal Pradesh
- World Checklist of Useful Plant Species 2020. Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew
