Canavalia gladiata
Canavalia gladiata
Safety & Hazards
The mature seeds contain toxic alkaloids. These can be destroyed by thoroughly boiling the seeds twice in salt water[ 300 Title Vegetables in the Tropics Publication Author Tindall. H. D. Publisher MacMillan, Oxford. Year 1983 ISBN 0-333-24268-8 Description An excellent, in-depth look at the main vegetable crops that can be grown in the Tropics, plus many less well-known plants. ].
Botanical Description
Canavalia gladiata is a vigorous, deep-rooted, annual to perennial climbing plant. The stems, which are often slightly woody, can grow up to 10 metres long, scrambling over the ground or twining into other plants for support[ 418 Title Ecocrop Publication Author Website http://ecocrop.fao.org/ecocrop/srv/en/home Publisher Year 0 ISBN Description Basic information on a wide range of useful plants, plus details of environmental needs where available. ]. The plant has a long history of cultivation - it is believed to have originated in eastern Asia and the seed carried to many other areas of the tropics. It is widely cultivated as an annual in tropical and some subtropical areas for its edible seeds and seedpods[ 300 Title Vegetables in the Tropics Publication Author Tindall. H. D. Publisher MacMillan, Oxford. Year 1983 ISBN 0-333-24268-8 Description An excellent, in-depth look at the main vegetable crops that can be grown in the Tropics, plus many less well-known plants. ]. The plant is also grown as an ornamental on fences and against houses[ 299 Title Protabase - Plant Resources of Tropical Africa. Publication Author Website http://www.prota.org Publisher Year 0 ISBN Description An excellent on-line database with detailed information on over 3,200 species of useful plants of Africa. ].