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Useful Tropical Plants

Dioscorea smilacifolia

De Wild. & T.Durand

Dioscoreaceae

+ Synonyms

Dioscorea demeusei De Wild. & T.Durand

Dioscorea echinulata De Wild.

Dioscorea flamignii De Wild.

Dioscorea orbicularis A.Chev. ex De Wild.

Common Name:

Dioscorea smilacifolia
Plant (right of centre in the foreground) growing into the surrounding vegetation
Photograph by: Scamperdale
Creative Commons License

General Information

Dioscorea smilacifolia is a herbaceous, perennial climbing plant with wiry, often spiny stems growing about 4 metres long from a tuberous rootstock. The stems twine right-handed around other plants for support, or scramble over the ground. The plant also sometimes bears bulbils in the leaf axils[
332
Title
The Useful Plants of West Tropical Africa.
Publication
 
Author
Burkil. H. M.
Publisher
Royal Botanic Gardens; Kew.
Year
1985 - 2004
ISBN
 
Description
Brief descriptions and details of the uses of over 4,000 plants. A superb, if terse, resource, it is also available electronically on the Web - see http://www.aluka.org/
].
The tubers are sometimes harvested from the wild for local use, but generally only in times of scarcity. The plant is sometimes grown in a small way, but mainly as an insurance against difficult times[
332
Title
The Useful Plants of West Tropical Africa.
Publication
 
Author
Burkil. H. M.
Publisher
Royal Botanic Gardens; Kew.
Year
1985 - 2004
ISBN
 
Description
Brief descriptions and details of the uses of over 4,000 plants. A superb, if terse, resource, it is also available electronically on the Web - see http://www.aluka.org/
].

Known Hazards

None known

Botanical References


Range

Tropical Africa - Sierra Leone to DR Congo and Uganda, south to Angola.

Habitat

Not known

Properties

Edibility Rating *
Medicinal Rating *  *
HabitPerennial Climber
Height3.00 m
Cultivation StatusCultivated, Wild

Cultivation Details

Not known

Edible Uses

The root is only eaten in time of scarcity, and then after careful preparation. Even then a bitterness remains after cooking. Some alkaloid has been detected in Nigerian material[
332
Title
The Useful Plants of West Tropical Africa.
Publication
 
Author
Burkil. H. M.
Publisher
Royal Botanic Gardens; Kew.
Year
1985 - 2004
ISBN
 
Description
Brief descriptions and details of the uses of over 4,000 plants. A superb, if terse, resource, it is also available electronically on the Web - see http://www.aluka.org/
].

Medicinal

The leaves are rubbed onto cuts[
332
Title
The Useful Plants of West Tropical Africa.
Publication
 
Author
Burkil. H. M.
Publisher
Royal Botanic Gardens; Kew.
Year
1985 - 2004
ISBN
 
Description
Brief descriptions and details of the uses of over 4,000 plants. A superb, if terse, resource, it is also available electronically on the Web - see http://www.aluka.org/
]. Three leaves are rubbed on the temples in three applications in order to cure epilepsy[
332
Title
The Useful Plants of West Tropical Africa.
Publication
 
Author
Burkil. H. M.
Publisher
Royal Botanic Gardens; Kew.
Year
1985 - 2004
ISBN
 
Description
Brief descriptions and details of the uses of over 4,000 plants. A superb, if terse, resource, it is also available electronically on the Web - see http://www.aluka.org/
]. The leaves, after being passed through a fire, are pulped to a paste for rubbing on the head to relieve headache[
332
Title
The Useful Plants of West Tropical Africa.
Publication
 
Author
Burkil. H. M.
Publisher
Royal Botanic Gardens; Kew.
Year
1985 - 2004
ISBN
 
Description
Brief descriptions and details of the uses of over 4,000 plants. A superb, if terse, resource, it is also available electronically on the Web - see http://www.aluka.org/
].

A decoction of the stem is drunk as a treatment for vertigo and hernia[
332
Title
The Useful Plants of West Tropical Africa.
Publication
 
Author
Burkil. H. M.
Publisher
Royal Botanic Gardens; Kew.
Year
1985 - 2004
ISBN
 
Description
Brief descriptions and details of the uses of over 4,000 plants. A superb, if terse, resource, it is also available electronically on the Web - see http://www.aluka.org/
].

Other Uses

None known

Propagation

Seed -
Cite as: Tropical Plants Database, Ken Fern. tropical.theferns.info. 2024-03-29. <tropical.theferns.info/viewtropical.php?id=Dioscorea+smilacifolia>

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