Common Name:

General Information

Cochlospermum tinctorium is a subshrub growing up to 80 cm tall with a woody subterranean rootstock that produces annual shoots[].
The plant is gathered from the wild, mainly for its use as a dye plant and in traditional medicine, though it is also used as a food[]. It has decorative flowers, which make it a potential ornamental[]. There is some export of the dye from Ghana[].

Known Hazards

The leaves and shoots of Cochlospermum tinctorium are possibly toxic because it is said that cattle will not graze the plant even in times of shortage[].

Botanical References

Range

Tropical Africa - Senegal to southern Sudan and Uganda.

Habitat

Dry savannah, preferring devastated, rocky and annually burnt regions, at elevations of 300 - 1,500 metres[].

Properties

Edibility Rating
Medicinal Rating
Other Uses Rating
Habit	Shrub
Height	0.80 m
Cultivation Status	Ornamental, Wild

Cultivation Details

A plant of the tropics at low to moderate elevations, in drier areas where there is a distinct dry season.

Edible Uses

Unripe fruits are eaten by hunters to allay thirst[].

The dye obtained from the rootstock is used to colour shea butter and cooking oil to which it possibly also imparts some flavour[, ].

Tender young leaves - cooked[].

Medicinal

In traditional medicine, the yellow rootstock is one of the most respected medicines in West Africa for the treatment of jaundice and liver diseases[].
The rootstock is rich in carotenoids that are the yellow pigments of the dye stuff; the rootstock also contains much mucilage, sugar, acetogenins, tannins (gallic acid, ellagic acid and ellagitannin), essential oils (alcohols, 3-hexadecanone), arjunolic acid and probably some alkaloid[].
The apocarotenoids cochloxanthin and dihydrocochloxanthin showed antimicrobial activity against Candida albicans, Aspergillus fumigatus, Staphylococcus aureus and Escherichia coli, but only at high concentrations[].
Arjunolic acid, isolated from the rootstock, has considerable inhibitory effects on skin tumour promoters[].
A methanolic rootstock extract showed antibacterial activity against some bacteria which are responsible for skin diseases[].
The tannins showed a remarkable antihepatotoxic activity and particularly gallic acid inhibits the production of oxygen-free radicals in leucocytes[].
An ethanol extract of the rootstock showed a pronounced antiplasmodial activity, with 3-O-E-p-coumaroylalphitolic acid as the most active compound[].
Leaf extracts showed moderate antiplasmodial activity[].

In addition to its use in treating liver conditions, the plant is also applied to cure oedema, urethral discharge, dysmenorrhoea, epilepsy, schistosomiasis, pneumonia, bronchial affections, conjunctivitis, gastric problems, diarrhoea, indigestion, stomach-ache and skin infections[].

An extract of the rootstock is taken against malaria[]. The rootstock is also chewed as a tonic[].

A concoction of the fruits, combined with tamarind fruits, is drunk to cure snakebites[].

The pulped leaves are used in a wet dressing to maturate abscesses and furuncles[].

A decoction of the twigs or rootstock is drunk or used in a bath to treat urino-genital disorders, kidney pain or pain between the ribs[]. The body is washed with a water extract of the rootstock to cure skin diseases and as prophylaxis[].

The seed oil is used to treat leprosy[].

Other Uses

A brown-yellow dye obtained from the rootstock is used for dyeing cloth (cotton), thread, mats, basketware and ornaments, and rarely also leather[]. The fresh or dried rootstock may be pulverized and pounded into a paste that is rubbed onto the article to be dyed; it may also be crushed, mixed with ash and boiled with the article to be dyed[]. Several colours can be obtained by the use of mordants (such as Striga asiatica) or by the addition of indigo[]. Adding lemon juice to the dye-bath improves the fastness of the dye[].
In Cameroon, a yellow facial mask is made from the powdered rootstock mixed with water[].

The floss of the fruit can be used to stuff cushions or can be spun into necklace cords[].
The young stem bark also yields a useful fibre[]. The bark makes a good rope[].

Propagation

Seed -

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