Boerhavia diffusa
| Boerhavia diffusa | |
| Light: |  |
| Moisture: |   |
| Soil pH: | 5.6-8.4 |
| Height: | 0.3' |
| Width: | 2' |
| Native to: | |
| Edible Rating: |  |
| Medicinal Rating: |  |
| Tea: | Yes |
 | |
Boerhavia diffusa (common name: tar vine)
Propagation: Seed - we have no information on this species but suggest sowing the seed in a greenhouse in the spring. When they are large enough to handle, prick the seedlings out into individual pots and grow them on in the greenhouse for at least their first winter. Plant them out into their permanent positions in late spring or early summer, after the last expected frosts.
Cuttings
Cultivation: We have very little information on this species and do not know if it will be hardy in Britain, though judging by its native range it could succeed outdoors at least in the milder parts of this country. It is hardy to at least -7°c in Australian gardens[1] but this cannot be translated directly to the British climate because our summers are cooler and our winters longer, colder and wetter. If the plant is capable of surviving our winters it is likely to need a sheltered very sunny position in a well-drained soil.
Most if not all members of this genus have the same edible uses[2].
Range: Australia - New South Wales, Queensland, South Australia, Victoria.
Habitat: A pioneer of bare areas[3], usually found on dry sandy soils[2].
Edibility: Tender young leaves and shoots - cooked and used as a vegetable[4][3][5][6].
Root - baked[4][3][5]. Rich in carbohydrate and protein, though the flavour is bland and the texture sometimes woody[2].
Seed - cooked. It can be ground into a powder and added to cereals when making bread, cakes etc[5].
Medicinal: The roots are diuretic, emetic, expectorant, laxative and stomachic[7][8][9]. They are used in the treatment of asthma, oedema, anaemia, jaundice, ascites, anasarca, scanty urine and internal inflammation. They are also said to be an antidote to snake poisoning[8][9]. An alkaloid in the roots has been shown experimentally to produce a distinct and persistent rise in blood pressure plus marked diuresis[8].
Soil: Can grow in light and medium soils.
Drainage: Prefers well drained soil.
Flower Type: Hermaphrodite
Also Known As: B. coccinea. B. repens. L.
Links
References
- ↑ Wrigley, John and Murray Fagg. Australian Native Plants. Collins, 1988.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 Low, Tim. Wild Food Plants of Australia. Angus and Robertson, 1989.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 Ewart, Alfred. Recording Census of the Victorian Flora. 1923.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 Cribb, Alan and Joan Cribb. Wild Food in Australia. Fontana, 1976.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 Kunkel, Günther. Plants for Human Consumption. Koeltz Scientific Books, 1984.
- ↑ Manandhar, Narayan. Plants and People of Nepal. Timber Press, 2002.
- ↑ Lassak, Erich and Tara McCarthy. Australian Medicinal Plants.
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 8.2 Chopra, R. Glossary of Indian Medicinal Plants. Council of Scientific and Industrial Research, New Delhi, 1986.
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 Manandhar, N. Medicinal Plants of Nepal Himalaya. Department of Medicinal Plants, 1993.