Polygala butyracea Heck.

An annual herb. It is stout and grows 2 m high. It has a single stem or can be weakly branched. The stems have soft hairs. The leaves are alternate, erect and narrow. They are 8-16 cm long by 0.5-1 cm wide. The flowering shoots are long and at the end of the plant. The flowers can be pink, white or yellow. The fruit is a narrow capsule 8 mm long. It is flattened and has wings. The seed are 6 mm long and dark.

A tropical plant. It grows in the northern part of West Africa. It is cultivated in fields up to 600 m above sea level. It can grow in poor soils and in the dry season.

The seeds are cooked or fried and ground and added to soups and meat dishes. Oil is extracted from the seeds for cooking. The roots are cooked and eaten

It is grown from seeds. It is grown in the dry season between rice crops and is intercropped with yams.