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| syn. Ceropegia acuminata (Roxb.), Ceropegia brosima (E. A. Bruce & P. R. O. Bally), Ceropegia bulbosa var. esculenta ((Edgew.) Hook. f.), Ceropegia bulbosa var. lushii ((Graham) Hook. f.), Ceropegia esculenta (Edgew.), Ceropegia lushii (Graham), Ceropegia lushii var. acuminata [wrong], Ceropegia tuberosa (Dalzell & Gibson), Ceropegia vignaldiana (A. Rich.) |
| distribution:
Bangladesh Ethiopia India: Andhra Pradesh; Punjab; Rajasthan; Cuddalore Province, Dharmapuri Province, Kancheepuram Province, Madurai Province, Salem Province, Thiruvallur Province, Tiruvannamalai Province, Viluppuram Province / Tamil Nadu; Uttar Pradesh Kenya: Nyanza Province Oman: Dhofar Province Pakistan: Punjab Province Saudi Arabia Somalia Tanzania Yemen: Al Mahrah Province |
| This species
almost looks like the tuberous species from South-Africa. And indeed I
found Ceropegia linearis ssp. woodii labeld with this wrong name in trade
! Both species can be discerned very perspicuous from eachother. Ceropegia bulbosa has entirely green leaves, the flowers are larger, have a different shape and are mostly green all over, only the petals are inside brown. In India the tubers and leaves of this species are eaten. The tubers are often boiled befor consumption (e.g. in Andhra Pradesh), because they contain a bitter substance, the alkaloid Ceropegin. In India this species is known under many names, e.g. Hedulo, Khadula, Khapparkadu (in Hindi); Bittiruka, Halike, Hallike, Halluka, Hulluka (in Kannada); Ankalodya, Gayala, Gayli, Gilodayam, Gilodya, Kaapar kaddha, Kalodayam, Khaparkaru, Khapparkadu, Patalathumbi (in Marathi); Ankalodya, Gilodayam, Gilodya, Kalodayam, Patalatumbi (in Sanskrit); Batchali dumpa, Langatai, Manchimanda, Manchimande, Manchi mande, Manchimandu, Mancimande, Mande, Manjimande, Nimmataayi, Nimmatayi, Paalathige, Palatige, Thiyyamande, Tiyyamanda, Tiyyamande (in Telugu). The species is now very endangered. In Rajasthan this species is called Art Khadula (Hindi). It is used here for many purposes, for example the seeds, brayed to a paste, are used to cure deafness, while this paste is dropped into the ears. An decoction made from the tubers is used, orally, to ease dropping out urinary bladder stones. Furthermore the tubers are eaten, either raw or cooked. Ceropegia vignaldiana (A. Rich.), a twining form with norrow lancet-shaped leaves and more or less light brown flowers form Arabia, is now included in the species Ceropegia bulbosa. If this is justified or if it should be regarded as a full species can be discussed furthermore. |
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 above
and left:Ceropegia bulbosa Photos: Alexander Lang |
 left:Ceropegia bulbosa Photo: by courtesy of Cok and Ine Grootscholten Copyright Grootscholten Succulenta nursery, Honselersdijk, The Netherlands http://www.succulenta-kwekerij.nl |
| References: - Focke Albers; Ulrich Meve: Illustrated Handbook of Succulent Plants: Asclepiadaceae; Springer (November 4, 2002) - Norbert Kilian; Peter Hein; Mohamed Ali Hubaishan: New and noteworthy records for the flora of Yemen, chiefly of Hadhramout and Al-Mahra. Willdenowia 32: 239-268. 2002 - K. N. Reddy; Chiranjibi Pattanaik; C. S. Reddy; V. S. Raju: Traditinal knowledge on wild food plants in Andhra Pradesh. Indian Journal of Traditional Knowledge, Vol. 6 (1), January 2007, pp. 223-229 - Shweta Swarnkar; S. S. Katewa: Ethnobotanical Observation on Tuberous Plants from Tribal Area of Rajasthan (India). Ethnobotanical Leaflets 12: 647-66. 2008 - Sheila Collenette: Saudi Arabia's Jabal Shada. From the author's presentation at the CSSA 2007 Convention held in Seattle, Washington. Cactus and Succulent Journal 80(2):67-71. 2008 |