Common Name: Marama Bean

General Information

Tylosema esculentum is a perennial herb or shrub with a tuberous root and prostrate branches that can trail along the ground for 6 metres or more[].
The plant provides an important part of the diet of the Khoisan people in the Kalahari, where subsistence agriculture is marginal due to drought and low soil fertility[]. It is also a delicacy among other peoples in southern Africa[]. The plant is regarded as having considerable potential as a crop for arid and semi-arid regions, and it is being investigated as a potential crop in several countries[, ].

Known Hazards

None known

Botanical References

Range

Southern Africa - Kalahari desert and neighbouring sandy regions.

Habitat

Localized in patches in grassland and wooded grassland vegetation in sandy and limestone (including dolomite) soils, but not on soils developed over granite or basalt[].

Properties

Edibility Rating
Other Uses Rating
Habit	Perennial
Height	1.00 m
Cultivation Status	Cultivated, Wild

Cultivation Details

A plant of the drier tropics, marama bean occurs naturally in an extreme environment with high temperatures and very low rainfall[]. It can be found at elevations up to 1,500 metres. It grows best in areas where annual daytime temperatures are within the range 22 - 30°c, but can tolerate 16 - 50°c[]. It prefers a mean annual rainfall in the range 300 - 600mm, but tolerates 150 - 1,600mm[, ]. The plant probably survives droughts by drawing on water stored in the tuber, which shrinks greatly in dry years[].
Requires a sunny position. Grows best in a deep, loose, sandy soil[]. Prefers a pH in the range 5.5 - 7, tolerating 5 - 7.5[]. An extremely drought-tolerant plant, it can grow in areas where rainfall is so slight and erratic that in some years almost no rain falls at all[]. In its native habitat surface water is usually available only for 8 weeks a year, though in the fine-grained sandy soils water may remain in the root zone for as long as 2 months after a rainfall[].
Unlike most members of this plant family, this species does not form nitrogen nodules on the roots[].

Edible Uses

Seed - cooked. After roasting, the seeds have a delicious, nutty flavour similar to coffee beans or roasted cashews[]. They may be boiled with maize meal or ground into flour to prepare a porridge or a coffee- or cocoa-like drink[]. The roasted seeds have sometimes been used as a culinary substitute for almonds[, ]. The seeds have a protein content around 30% (approaching that of the soya bean) and an oil content around 40% (approaching that of the peanut)[].
The immature seeds and stems may be eaten cooked as a vegetable or in soups[].
A coffee-like beverage can be made from the seeds[].

An edible oil is obtained from the seed[]. Similar to almond oil in consistency and taste[, ]. Golden-yellow, with a nutty odour and a pleasant, although slightly bitter flavour[, ]

Tuber - cooked. The sweet-tasting tuber can be baked, boiled or roasted[, ]. Young tubers have a sweet and pleasant taste and the texture has been described as similar to that of artichoke[]. Tubers older than 2 years become fibrous and bitter and are usually not eaten, but they are an important emergency source of water for humans and animals[].

Medicinal

None known

Agroforestry Uses:

Marama bean may have potential as an ornamental ground cover plant[].

Other Uses

The seeds and kernels yield up to 50% by weight of a golden yellow, transparent oil that can be used in cosmetic preparations[].

Propagation

Seed it should not be pre-soaked, though germination might be improved by scarification[]. Germination starts to take place after about 9 days[].

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