Characteristics
A trailing, prickly shrub or climbing vine. The stem is branched and 8 m long. It is woody. There can be a few prickles. The leaves are stalked. The stalks are 2-4 cm long. The stalks are winged and have ear shaped appendages. The leaves are oval and taper to the tip. The leaf blade is 6-17 cm long by 3-12 cm wide. There are 10-30 flowering stalks together and they are 5-17 cm long. They have many flowers. The flowers are yellow. They are in the axils of leaves. The fruit is a berry. It is round and 4-6 mm across.
| Life form |
perennial
|
| Growth form |
-
|
| Growth support |
climber
|
| Foliage retention |
evergreen
|
| Sexuality |
dioecy
|
| Pollination |
-
|
| Spread |
-
|
| Mature width (meter) |
-
|
| Mature height (meter) |
-
|
| Root system |
-
|
| Rooting depth (meter) |
-
|
| Root diameter (meter) |
-
|
| Flower color |
-
|
| Blooming months |
-
|
| Fruit color |
-
|
| Fruiting months |
-
|
| Nitrogen fixer |
-
|
| Photosynthetic pathway |
c3
|
Environment
A tropical plant. In Nepal plants grow between 500-900 m altitude. They trail on shrubs in open places. In China they grow from near sea level to 1500 m altitude in S China. In Yunnan. It occurs in the Western Ghats in India.
| Light |
-
|
| Soil humidity |
-
|
| Soil texture |
-
|
| Soil acidity |
-
|
| Soil nutriment |
-
|
| Hardiness (USDA) |
|
Usage
The tender leaves and shoots are cooked as a vegetable. They are also eaten raw with chilli sauce. The fresh fruit are eaten. Flowers are eaten raw by local children.
Cultivation
Plants are grown from seed.
| Mode |
seedlings
|
| Germination duration (days) |
-
|
| Germination temperacture (C°) |
-
|
| Germination luminosity |
-
|
| Germination treatment |
-
|
| Minimum temperature (C°) |
-
|
| Optimum temperature (C°) |
-
|
| Size |
-
|
| Vigor |
-
|
| Productivity |
-
|
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