Astragalus garbancillo
Cav.
Fabaceae
Astragalus benthamianus Gillies ex Hook. & Arn.
Astragalus mandonii Rusby
Astragalus minor Clos
Astragalus unifultus L'Hér.
Tragacantha benthamiana (Gillies) Kuntze
Tragacantha garbancillo (Cav.) Kuntze
Tragacantha minor (Clos) Kuntze
Common Name:
General Information
Astragalus garbancillo is a perennial plant with stems that are somewhat woody at their base. It produces stems from 10 - 50cm tall.
The plant is used locally as an insecticide, to wash clothes and for medicinal purposes.
Known Hazards
The plant is said to be toxic to livestock, often causing death[
434- Title
- Flora of Peru
- Publication
-
- Author
- Macbride. J.F.
- Publisher
- Field Museum of Natural History
- Year
- 1936
- ISBN
-
- Description
- An excellent attempt at a Flora of Peru, though it is clear that many of the plants were imperfectly known at that time and so information on them was sketchy. Available for download from the Internet.
].
Botanical References
Range
S. America - Argentina, Bolivia, Peru.
Habitat
Common weedy shrub in open fields and on hedgerows along tracks at elevations above 2,000 metres in Peru[
508- Title
- The Ethnobotany of Chinchero.
- Publication
- Fieldiana Botany New Series No. 24
- Author
- Franquemont C. Et al
- Website
- http://www.biodiversitylibrary.org
- Publisher
- Field Museum of Natural History.
- Year
- 1990
- ISBN
- 0015-0746
- Description
- Brief details on the local uses of plants for an Andean community in southern Peru. It can be downloaded from the Internet.
].
Properties
| Medicinal Rating |  |
| Other Uses Rating |  |
| Habit | Perennial |
| Height | 0.20 m |
| Pollinators | Bees, Lepidoptera |
| Cultivation Status | Wild |
Cultivation Details
A plant of the subtropical to tropical zones, usually found at higher elevations up to 3,500 metres.
Requires a dry well-drained soil in a sunny position[
1- Title
- RHS Dictionary of Plants plus Supplement. 1956
- Publication
-
- Author
- F. Chittendon.
- Publisher
- Oxford University Press
- Year
- 1951
- ISBN
- -
- Description
- Comprehensive listing of species and how to grow them. Somewhat outdated, it has been replaced in 1992 by a new dictionary (see [200]).
].
Plants are intolerant of root disturbance and are best planted in their final positions whilst still small[
200- Title
- The New RHS Dictionary of Gardening. 1992.
- Publication
-
- Author
- Huxley. A.
- Publisher
- MacMillan Press
- Year
- 1992
- ISBN
- 0-333-47494-5
- Description
- Excellent and very comprehensive, though it contains a number of silly mistakes. Readable yet also very detailed.
].
This species has a symbiotic relationship with certain soil bacteria, these bacteria form nodules on the roots and fix atmospheric nitrogen. Some of this nitrogen is utilized by the growing plant but some can also be used by other plants growing nearby[
200- Title
- The New RHS Dictionary of Gardening. 1992.
- Publication
-
- Author
- Huxley. A.
- Publisher
- MacMillan Press
- Year
- 1992
- ISBN
- 0-333-47494-5
- Description
- Excellent and very comprehensive, though it contains a number of silly mistakes. Readable yet also very detailed.
]. Many members of this genus can be difficult to grow, this may be due partly to a lack of their specific bacterial associations in the soil[
200- Title
- The New RHS Dictionary of Gardening. 1992.
- Publication
-
- Author
- Huxley. A.
- Publisher
- MacMillan Press
- Year
- 1992
- ISBN
- 0-333-47494-5
- Description
- Excellent and very comprehensive, though it contains a number of silly mistakes. Readable yet also very detailed.
].
Edible Uses
None known
Medicinal
The plant is used medicinally[
434- Title
- Flora of Peru
- Publication
-
- Author
- Macbride. J.F.
- Publisher
- Field Museum of Natural History
- Year
- 1936
- ISBN
-
- Description
- An excellent attempt at a Flora of Peru, though it is clear that many of the plants were imperfectly known at that time and so information on them was sketchy. Available for download from the Internet.
].
The plant is boiled with cane alcohol and rubbed on the legs to relieve pain[
508- Title
- The Ethnobotany of Chinchero.
- Publication
- Fieldiana Botany New Series No. 24
- Author
- Franquemont C. Et al
- Website
- http://www.biodiversitylibrary.org
- Publisher
- Field Museum of Natural History.
- Year
- 1990
- ISBN
- 0015-0746
- Description
- Brief details on the local uses of plants for an Andean community in southern Peru. It can be downloaded from the Internet.
].
Agroforestry Uses:
The growing plant has been used as an indicator plant to locate the presence of uranium ore in Peru[
1309- Title
- The Leguminosae; A Source Book of Characteristics, Uses and Nodulation
- Publication
-
- Author
- Allen O.N.; Allen E.K.
- Publisher
- University of Wisconsin
- Year
- 1981
- ISBN
- 0-333-32221-5
- Description
- An amazing and comprehensive work, giving a brief guide to the many genera of the family Fabaceae and also the principle uses of the genus.
].
Other Uses
Used as an aid to soaps for washing fine fabrics[
46- Title
- Dictionary of Economic Plants.
- Publication
-
- Author
- Uphof. J. C. Th.
- Publisher
- Weinheim
- Year
- 1959
- ISBN
- -
- Description
- An excellent and very comprehensive guide but it only gives very short descriptions of the uses without any details of how to utilize the plants. Not for the casual reader.
,
434- Title
- Flora of Peru
- Publication
-
- Author
- Macbride. J.F.
- Publisher
- Field Museum of Natural History
- Year
- 1936
- ISBN
-
- Description
- An excellent attempt at a Flora of Peru, though it is clear that many of the plants were imperfectly known at that time and so information on them was sketchy. Available for download from the Internet.
].
The plant is said to have insecticidal properties[
46- Title
- Dictionary of Economic Plants.
- Publication
-
- Author
- Uphof. J. C. Th.
- Publisher
- Weinheim
- Year
- 1959
- ISBN
- -
- Description
- An excellent and very comprehensive guide but it only gives very short descriptions of the uses without any details of how to utilize the plants. Not for the casual reader.
,
434- Title
- Flora of Peru
- Publication
-
- Author
- Macbride. J.F.
- Publisher
- Field Museum of Natural History
- Year
- 1936
- ISBN
-
- Description
- An excellent attempt at a Flora of Peru, though it is clear that many of the plants were imperfectly known at that time and so information on them was sketchy. Available for download from the Internet.
].
Propagation
Seed - it has a hard seedcoat and may benefit from scarification before sowing in order to speed up and improve germination. This can usually be done by pouring a small amount of nearly boiling water on the seeds (being careful not to cook them!) and then soaking them for 12 - 24 hours in warm water. By this time they should have imbibed moisture and swollen - if they have not, then carefully make a nick in the seedcoat (being careful not to damage the embryo) and soak for a further 12 hours before sowing.
If you have any useful information about this plant, please leave a comment. Comments have to be approved before they are shown here.
Useful Tropical Plants Database 2014 by
Ken Fern,
web interface by
Ajna Fern
with help from
Richard Morris.
