Anchomanes difformis
(Blume) Engl.
Forest anchomanes
C T Johansson (via Wikimedia Commons)
Alvesgaspar (via Wikimedia Commons)
Yorick Van Hoef
(c) Scamperdale, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC)
(c) International Institute of Tropical Agriculture, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC)
(c) Scamperdale, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC)
What to Eat
Edible parts: Tubers, Corm, Root
The tubers are consumed as a famine food after extensive processing—washing and fermenting or boiling to remove saponins and raphides.
Known Hazards
Where to Find It
A tropical plant. It grows in the forest in West Africa. It grows in savannah woodland. It grows up to 1,500 m above sea level.
Africa, Asia, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Central Africa, Central African Republic, CAR, Congo DR, Côte d'Ivoire, East Africa, Gabon, Ghana, Guinea, Guinée, Guinea-Bissau, Indonesia, Ivory Coast, Nigeria, SE Asia, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Singapore, Sudan, Tanzania, Togo, Uganda, West Africa*, Zambia,
How to Identify
A large herb. It grows 2 m tall. It keeps growing from year to year. The leaf stalk is stout and has prickles. The plant grows 2 m high. The leaves are large and much divided. The bract around the flower is 20-25 cm long. The leaves arise from a tuber. The tuber is 80 cm long by 20 cm across. The fruit are red berries. The seeds are oval.
Nutrition Score: 35/100
| Part | Moisture | kJ | kcal | Protein | Vit A | Vit C | Iron | Zinc |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Corm | 72.4 | 422 | 101 | 3.4 | — | — | — | — |
How to Grow
It can be grown from root cuttings.
Medicinal Uses
The liquid obtained after cooking the crushed leaves with other drug-plants is drunk as a cough-cure. Both the rhizome and the leaves are considered to be galactagogue. The rhizomes are used to make alteratives for internal medication, but care has to be exercised on account of the caustic nature of the sap. Externally, the rhizomes are used to make rubefacients and vesicants but care has to be exercised on account of the caustic nature of the sap. The root, pulped with potter’s clay, is applied to maturate abscesses. Both the root, or the leaves and stems, are considered to be a powerful purgative and used to treat oedemas, difficult child-birth, as a poison antidote, and as a strong diuretic for treating urethral discharge, jaundice and kidney-pains. The plant causes uterine contractions and so can be effective in treating menstrual problems, aiding child birth, or causing an abortion. The sap from the stem is ophthalmic A strong presence of alkaloids is found in Nigerian material.
Wikipedia
Source ↗Anchomanes difformis is a plant found in much of subsaharan Africa and is a member of the arum family, the Araceae.
Other Information
A famine food.
Names & Synonyms
Ancomanes hutan, Dioko di kisimbi, Kikwa ki bankita, Mimwa ki bankita, Mpansa makunsi, Nzete ki simbi, Pundebuno, Pundibono
References (20)
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- Latham, P., 2004, Useful Plants of Bas-Congo province. Latham & DFID p 30
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- Sukarya, D. G., (Ed.) 2013, 3,500 Plant Species of the Botanic Gardens of Indonesia. LIPI p 1064
- Ubom, R. M., 2010, Ethnobotany and Diversity Conservatioon in the Niger Delta, Nigeria. International Journal of Botany. 6(3): 310-322
- von Katja Rembold, 2011, Conservation status of the vascular plants in East African rain forests. Dissertation Universitat Koblenz-Landau
- World Checklist of Useful Plant Species 2020. Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew
