Common Name:

General Information

Astragalus atropilosus is a perennial, or perhaps sometimes biennial herb or subshrub usually growing 50 - 100cm tall, occasionally to 200cm. The stems are often numerous and can be erect or ascending. The thick rootstock can be 2cm in diameter[].
The plant is harvested from the wild for local use as a food and medicine.

Known Hazards

None known

Botanical References

Range

East Africa - Sudan, Eritrea and Ethiopia, south to Zimbabwe, Botswana and northern S. Africa; Arabian Peninsula - Yemen, Saudi Arabia.

Habitat

Grassland, especially where disturbed; abandoned cultivations; forest and thicket margins; grassy riverbanks; more open parts of bamboo-forest; scrub; rocky places; Loudetia arundinacea grassland with scattered trees; sometimes on termite mounds[].

Properties

Edibility Rating
Medicinal Rating
Habit	Biennial/Perennial
Height	1.00 m
Cultivation Status	Wild

Cultivation Details

Not known

Edible Uses

Leaves - cooked and eaten as a side dish - sometimes mixed with the leaves of Solanum nigrum[].

Medicinal

A decoction of the roots is added to hot milk and given to women with uterine pains after childbirth[].

Phytochemical analysis of the whole plant showed the presence of alkaloids, flavonoids, tannins, volatile oils and sterols/triterpenes[].
An ethanolic extract produced a decrease in heart contractions and a fall in blood pressure, neuromuscular blocking activity, and hypernatraemia[].

Other Uses

None known

Propagation

Seed -

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