Common Name:

General Information

Flemingia tuberosa is a perennial plant with scandent or trailing stems 90 - 120cm long that become more or less woody.
The plant is harvested from the wild for local use as a food and a medicine. The root is often sold as a food in local markets[].

Known Hazards

None known

Botanical References

Range

E. Asia - southern India

Habitat

Grassy slopes, moist deciduous forests[].

Properties

Edibility Rating
Medicinal Rating
Habit	Shrub
Height	0.60 m
Pollinators	Bees, Insects
Cultivation Status	Wild

Cultivation Details

Species in this genus generally succeed in sunny and partially shady positions so long as the soil is well-drained[].

Edible Uses

Root - raw or cooked. Sweet but somewhat astringent[]. Cooking the tuber removes the astringency[]. Fresh tubers contain 40.12% starch, 25.47% sugar and gum, 13.04% albuminoids, 12.16% cellulose, 4.13% asparagin, 3.44% ash, 1.16% yellow resin[].

Medicinal

The sweet, astringent tubers are useful in the treatment of diarrhoea,dysentery and vagianal discharges (leucorrhoea)[, ]

Other Uses

None known

Propagation

Like many species within the family Fabaceae, once they have been dried for storage the seeds of this species 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[].
Cuttings[].

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