Caylusea abyssinica Fisch. & C.A.Mey.

Erect or ascending herb, occasionally bushy, 1.5–10 dm. high.. Stem simple or branched, striate, glabrous or often scabrous to sparsely hairy on the angles, especially towards the inflorescence.. Leaves linear or lanceo­late, 2–8 cm. × 2–18 mm., scabrid on the nerves and margins, occasionally undulate.. Racemes terminal, dense, spike-like, 5–40 cm. long.. Bracts linear-subulate, persistent.. Pedicels slightly shorter than the bracts but elongating considerably in fruit.. Sepals subequal, up to 2.5 mm. long, persistent.. Petals white, up to 3.5 mm. long, 2 adaxial deeply 4-or 5-fid, 3 abaxial entire or 2-fid.. Filaments papillose; anthers salmon-coloured or orange, turning yellow at maturity.. Fruit about 4 mm. in diameter, 7–12­seeded.. Seeds hippocrepiform, about 1.4 mm. long, rugulose with small rounded warts which are fused to form transverse wrinkles, pale brown when ripe.. Fig. 1.

A weed of secondary grassland, abandoned cultivation, disturbed or waste places and riversides, at elevations from 1,200-3,000 metres.

The leaves are boiled as a vegetable. They are washed, chopped, cooked and eaten with other vegetables. It is popular where it is cooked with pounded cannabis seeds.

Plants can be grown from seeds.