Common Name:

General Information

Macrotyloma uniflorum is an annual to perennial plant, usually producing a number of stems from a perennial, fibrous rhizome. These stems can be 30 - 60cm or more tall, they sprawl over the ground or twine into other plants for support[, ].
This species has been cultivated since prehistoric times in S Asia, mainly from India to Myanmar, as a low-grade pulse crop[]. More recently, it has been grown in many other tropical areas of the world as a hardy forage and green manure plant, and has proved to be especially promising in Australia and SE Asia[, ].

Known Hazards

The seeds contain antinutritional compounds such as lectins, trypsin inhibitors, phytates, tannins and oxalic acid. They need to be thoroughly cooked or fermented before being eaten[].

Botanical References

Range

Eastern and southern Africa - Ethiopia, Somalia, Kenya, Tanzania, Rwanda, Angola to Mozambique, south to S. Africa; E. Asia - Indian subcontinent.

Habitat

Not known

Properties

Edibility Rating
Medicinal Rating
Other Uses Rating
Habit	Annual/Perennial
Height	0.50 m
Pollinators	Self, Insects
Self-fertile	Yes
Cultivation Status	Cultivated, Wild

Cultivation Details

A plant of the tropics and subtropics, where it is found at elevations up to 1,800 metres. It grows best in areas where annual daytime temperatures are within the range 20 - 28°c, but can tolerate 17 - 35°c[]. It is completely intolerant of frost[]. It prefers a mean annual rainfall in the range 500 - 1,200mm, but tolerates 300, 4,300mm[].
Grows best in a sunny position[]. The plant is adapted to a wide range of well-drained soils, from sands and gravels to clay loams and heavy clays[]. It succeeds in most soils, including those low in nutrients[]. Prefers a pH in the range 5.5 - 7, tolerating 5 - 8[]. Established plants are very drought tolerant[, ].
Plants take 120 - 180 days to mature a seed crop[].
In India average seed yields vary from 200 - 900 kg/ha, whilst in Australia yields of 1,100 - 2,300 kg/ha have been achieved[].
Fresh matter production may be 18 - 30 tonnes per hectare[].
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[].

Edible Uses

Seed - cooked. The mature seeds are boiled, fried or ground into a paste and used in various dishes. The seed can also be fermented in the same way as soybeans (Glycine max)[, , ].

Medicinal

The seeds are considered to be astringent, diuretic and tonic[, ].

The seeds have shown in-vivo antihepatotoxic activity[].
Lipid from the seeds has shown in-vivo protective and healing activity against peptic ulcers[].
Extracts from the seeds have shown in-vitro antilithic activity[].

Agroforestry Uses:

The stems, leaves, and husks are used as a green manure[]. The plants twining habit allows it to smother grasses and shorter weeds[].
The plant is usually grown as a cover crop in orchards or as an intercrop with annual grains such as sorghum[].
The plant has value as a pioneer legume to restore soil fertility, or sometimes as a regenerating annual in permanent pasture[].

Other Uses

None known

Propagation

Seed - does not need scarification[]. It should be sown in situ[].

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