Derris trifoliata
Fabaceae FAMILY

Derris trifoliata

Derris trifoliata

Edibility
0/5
Medicinal
2/5

Safety & Hazards

The plant contains rotenone and has been used traditionally as a fish poison[ 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. , 372 Title Flowers of India Publication Author Website http://www.flowersofindia.net/ Publisher Year 0 ISBN Description A wed site of native Indian plants, plus cultivated and naturalized species. It has good quality photos and terse details on more than 3,000 species and cultivars. ] - the rotenone kills or stuns the fish making them easy to catch, but the fish remain perfectly edible for mammals. Rotenone is classified by the World Health Organization as moderately hazardous. It is mildly toxic to humans and other mammals, but extremely toxic to many insects (hence its use as an insecticide) and aquatic life, including fish. This higher toxicity in fish and insects is because the lipophilic rotenone is easily taken up through the gills or trachea, but not as easily through the skin or the gastrointestinal tract. The lowest lethal dose for a child is 143 mg/kg, but human deaths from rotenone poisoning are rare because its irritating action causes vomiting. Deliberate ingestion of rotenone, however, can be fatal. The compound decomposes when exposed to sunlight and usually has an activity of six days in the environment.

Botanical Description

Derris trifoliata is an evergreen shrub, most commonly producing twining, climbing or creeping stems 3 - 15 metres or more long, though sometimes remaining as a smaller, erect plant[ 303 Title World Agroforesty Centre Publication Author Website http://www.worldagroforestry.org/ Publisher Year 0 ISBN Description An excellent online database of a huge range of trees giving very good information on each plant - its uses, ecology, identity, propagation, pests etc. , 328 Title African Flowering Plants Database Publication Author Website http://www.ville-ge.ch/musinfo/bd/cjb/africa/recherche.php Publisher Conservatoire et Jardin Botaniques. Year 0 ISBN Description Contains information on over 150,000 plant names (including synonyms) giving a description and habitat, plus a distribution map. , 1414 Title The Genera Aganope, Derris, and Paraderris (Fabaceae, Millettieae) in Thailand Publication Systematic Botany (2012) 37(2) pp 404-436 Author Sirichamorn Y.; Adema F.A.C.B.; & van Welzen P.C. Publisher Year 2012 ISBN Description ]. The stems can be up to 4cm in diameter[ 713 Title Australian Tropical Rainforest Plants Publication Author Website http://www.anbg.gov.au/cpbr/cd-keys/rfk/index.html Publisher Year 0 ISBN Description An online resource giving botanical information, and a little bit about plant usage, for over 2,700 species of plants found in the Australian rainforest. ]. The plant is used locally as a medicine, source of tannins and insecticide. It is occasionally cultivated for the rotenone that can be obtained from its root[ 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. ].

Habitat & Origin

Origintropical
Native RangeEast tropical Africa - Kenya to S. Africa, Madagascar; through tropical Asia to New Guinea, northern Australia and the western Pacific
HabitatMangrove swamps, brackish swamps, coastal primary and secondary forest, coastal bushland and thicket, particularly along rivers near their tidal limits or along the shore; at elevations up to 400 metres[ 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. , 328 Title African Flowering Plants Database Publication Author Website http://www.ville-ge.ch/musinfo/bd/cjb/africa/recherche.php Publisher Conservatoire et Jardin Botaniques. Year 0 ISBN Description Contains information on over 150,000 plant names (including synonyms) giving a description and habitat, plus a distribution map. , 1414 Title The Genera Aganope, Derris, and Paraderris (Fabaceae, Millettieae) in Thailand Publication Systematic Botany (2012) 37(2) pp 404-436 Author Sirichamorn Y.; Adema F.A.C.B.; & van Welzen P.C. Publisher Year 2012 ISBN Description ].