If you would like to support this site, please consider Donating.
Useful Tropical Plants

Ibicella lutea

(Lindl.) Van Eselt.

Martyniaceae

+ Synonyms

Martynia lutea Lindl.

Martynia montevidensis Cham.

Proboscidea lutea Stapf

Common Name:

Ibicella lutea
Flowering stem
Photograph by: Michael Wolf
Creative Commons License
Ibicella lutea Ibicella lutea Ibicella lutea Ibicella lutea Ibicella lutea Ibicella lutea Ibicella lutea

General Information

Ibicella lutea is a spreading, annual plant growing 30 - 60cm tall and perhaps 1 metre wide. The plant has a strong smell and is covered with a sticky exudation. Insects often become stuck and die, leading people to believe that the plant is insectivorous - it does not produce digestive enzymes, however, and the jury seems to be still out on whether it is a true insectivorous plant.
The plant is sometimes gathered from the wild for local medicinal use. It is also cultivated as an ornamental and has been grown for the young fruits in Brazil, as well as in France in the 19th century[
317
Title
Mansfeld's Database of Agricultural and Horticultural Plants
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://mansfeld.ipk-gatersleben.de/pls/htmldb_pgrc/f?p=185:3:4292127278597336
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
Terse details of a huge range of useful plants.
].

Known Hazards

The seeds have sharp, curved horns, which can attach themselves to animals feet and therefore be transported to another site[
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 can cause serious damage to the feet of some animals.

Botanical References

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.

Range

S. America - Argentina, Paraguay, Uruguay, Brazil.

Habitat

Not known

Properties

Weed PotentialYes
Edibility Rating *  *
Medicinal Rating *  *
HabitAnnual
Height0.50 m
Cultivation StatusCultivated, Ornamental, Wild

Cultivation Details

A plant of subtropical to tropical drier areas, where it is found at elevations from near sea level to over 1,000 metres.
Requires a sunny position in a well-drained soil.
The plant has escaped from cultivation in some areas, particularly in drier regions, and become a troublesome weed[
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.
].
It takes around 20 weeks from seed sowing to the first flowers opening[
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

The young fruits are pickled or eaten as sweetmeats[
301
Title
Cornucopia II
Publication
 
Author
Facciola. S.
Publisher
Kampong Publications, California.
Year
1998
ISBN
0-9628087-2-5
Description
The second edition of an excellent guide to the edible uses of plants, though it does not give any details of cultivation etc.
,
317
Title
Mansfeld's Database of Agricultural and Horticultural Plants
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://mansfeld.ipk-gatersleben.de/pls/htmldb_pgrc/f?p=185:3:4292127278597336
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
Terse details of a huge range of useful plants.
].

Medicinal

The seeds are emollient, resolvent[
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.
]. They are used as a poultice[
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.
].

Other Uses

None known

Propagation

Seed - pre-soak for 24 hours in warm water then sow in situ in a warm, sunny position.
Cite as: Tropical Plants Database, Ken Fern. tropical.theferns.info. 2024-10-07. <tropical.theferns.info/viewtropical.php?id=Ibicella+lutea>

Add a Comment:

If you have any useful information about this plant, please leave a comment. Comments have to be approved before they are shown here.