Some 3 billion people in the world live outside the cash economy in the world’s poorest nations. Food security and regular supply are their daily concerns. Chronic malnutrition is a leading cause of death and disease for them. Young children are amongst the most affected. One child every 5-10 seconds dies from undernutrition. Vitamin A deficiency causes night blindness for someone every minute. Most people in tropical and subtropical countries are iron deficient.
Our goal is to provide information that enables people to choose the right plant for their environment, to give them stable food production and a greater choice of plants to enrich their diets and improve their nutritional wellbeing.
The plant fact sheets listed in this collection are only a small portion of those available from FPI. Please check your plant inquiries in the ECHO Search and reference the FPI plant database for further information.
Most of the plants selected to list here are further described in country-specific publications by Food Plant Solutions (FPS in the Search).
8000 Starchy Staples
7000 Legumes
6000 Leafy Greens
5000 Fruits
4000 Vegetables
3000 Nuts, Seeds, Herbs, and other foods
948 Issues in this Publication (Showing issues 7000 - 6000) Previous | Next
Acacia pennata - Cha-om
Edible Portion: Leaves
A shrub or small tree. It grows 5 m tall. There are prickles along the stem. The leaves are twice divided and there are 8-18 pairs of pinnae. There are up to 50 pairs of pinnules on each pinnae. The flowers are yellow. They are in large clusters at the ends of branches. The pods are flattened.
Other names :
Aila, Akar chuis, Akar kepah, Arari, Aroi garut, Cha om, Chili, Hai, Hpak-ha-awn, Ktaura, Kamo, Kareencha, Khangkhu, Khang muk, Khembra, Mchoo som bour, Miao tei, Nam ke ret, Nam-ki-ret, Pa ge da, Pala, Phak kan kong, Phak kha, Poswiidaw, Rigot, Seengai, Seenga keerai, Shembi, Singaya akulu, Suboke-gyi, Suji, Suyit, Tao pu, Thembra, Tuo bo ji niu, Tuopou-weiniu,
The correct name may now be Senegalia pennata
Acacia canescens (Kurz) Gamble;
Acacia hainanensis Hayata;
Acacia pendata (L.) Willd.[Spelling variant];
Acacia pseudo-intsia Ridley; ?
Albizia tenerrima deVriese;
Mimosa pennata L.;
and others
Amaranthus caudatus - Grain Amaranth
Edible parts - Leaves, Seeds, Vegetable
An annual plant which can be 2 m high and 45 cm across. The stems are angular and it can have a single stem or be branched.
It is often limp in the upper parts. Plants are hairy at first but become smooth. Often they are tinged purple. Leaves are 2-4 cm
long by 0.7-1.6 cm wide on a leaf stalk 0.5-1.5 cm long. Leaves can taper to a tip at the end. They can also thin towards the
base. The veins are pale underneath. The flower clusters are in spikes on the side or top branches. The flowers are sometimes
branched and can droop over. They can be 45 cm long. The fruit is oval. Seed are 1-1.3 mm across.
Amaranthus hybridus
Leafy Greens
Edible parts - Leaves, Seeds, Vegetable
An annual herb. It is an upright plant. It grows 80 cm to 2 m tall. It is often green but can be dark red. The leaves are simple and alternate. The leaves are oval shaped and can be 15 cm long. The flowers can be red, yellow or white. They are in spikes at the top of the plant and in the axils of leaves. The seeds are small and shiny and black.
Amaranthus tricolor
Edible Portion: Leaves, Seeds, Vegetable, Flowers, Leaves - Tea
A herb about 1 m high and spreads 45 cm wide. A small annual leafy green. An upright, much branched annual with a thin membrane covering the stems. Sometimes the plant lies over. The stems are angular. The plant branches in the upper part of the plant. It is smooth and grows from seed each year. Leaves have long leaf stalks which can be 5-10 cm long. Leaves vary in shape, size and colour. The leaf blade can be 5-25 cm long by 2-6 cm wide. Leaves are dull purplish and the top leaves can be yellow or red. Some types have coloured leaves or patterns on the leaves. It has a clumpy seed head at the top. The flower spike at the top can be 30 cm long. The seed are 1-1.2 mm across and black.
Common Names: Chinese amaranth, Red amaranth, Anana, Anantarika, Anga-sag, Arai keerai, Ariki sira, Badi chaulai, Ban chaulai, Barichulai, Bathua, Bayam kadong, Bayam, Bayam, Bilikeere soppu, Bireum, Chantili, Chaulai sag, Chauraiya, Chengkruu, Chorie danga shak, Danta shak, Dantu, Datha, Den canh, Dengo, Dengua-sag, Dengua, Den tia, Driti-damudamu, Een choy, Espinaca, Gai heng, Gotala matala, Gurane, Han ts'oi, Harawi, Hijau, Hinn-choy, Hin-nu-nwe, Hiyuna, Jenso ara, Joseph’s coat, Kayyatota kura, Kpedekpede, Kupei keeray, Kutilis, Lal mat, Lal note, Lal shak, Lal-sag, Lalsak, Lalru, Latte, Marsa, Marshi, Mathla, Moea, Mo tuo qi pu, Notay sag, Notiya sag, Pa hong, Pak hom, Pak khom, Pirum, Ran math, Ranga sak, Rau den tia do, Ronga moricha, Sad amaranth, Salad amaranth, Sanse Xian, Taduljira, Tampala, Telele, Terere, Thandankeerai, Tota kura, Totoe, Tribarvni ščir, W'oa, Yubua, Urai-pula, Xian Cai, Zepina
Synonyms:
Amaranthus amboinicus Buch.-Ham ex Wall.;
Amaranthus bicolor Nocca ex Willd.;
Amaranthus cuspidatus Vis.;
Amaranthus flexuosus Moq.;
Amaranthus gangeticus L.;
Amaranthus gangeticus var. angustior Bailey;
Amaranthus inamoenus Willd.;
Amaranthus incomptus Willd.;
Amaranthus japonicus Houtt. ex Willd.;
Amaranthus lanceolatus Roxb.;
Amaranthus lancifolius Roxb.;
Amaranthus mangostanus Linnaeus;
Amaranthus melancholius L.;
Amaranthus oleraceus Roxb.;
Amaranthus polygamus L.;
Amaranthus rotundifolius Moq.;
Amaranthus salicifolius H. J. Veitch;
Amaranthus tricolor var. gangeticus (L.) Fiori;
Amaranthus tricolor var. mangostanus (L.) Aellen;
Amaranthus tricolor var. melancholicus (L) Lam.;
Amaranthus tricolor var. tristis (Willd.) Mehrotra, Aswal & Bisht;
Amaranthus tricolor var. tristis (L.) Thell.;
Amaranthus tristis L.;
Amaranthus tristis var. leptostachys Moq.;
Blitum gangeticum Moench;
Blitum melancholicum Moench;
Glomeraria bicolor Cav. ex Moq.;
Glomeraria tricolor (L.) Cav.;
Basella alba - Indian Spinach
Edible Portion: Leaves, Tender Stems, Vegetable
An annual or perennial climbing herb with thick fleshy leaves. The vine is smooth and juicy and can be 10 m long. It branches freely. The vine and leaves can be red or green. The leaves are fleshy and pointed at the tip. They can be 8-18 cm long and 8-10 cm across. They are carried alternately along the vine. Leaves can be heart shaped or oval. It has white, pink or red flowers in short spikes which are in the axils of the leaves. Flowers have both sexes. The fruit are round and soft. They can be red, white or black and are 6-8 mm across. The seeds are round and black. They are 3 mm across. (Often the ones with heart shaped leaves are called Basella cordifolia, the ones with a red stem Basella rubra and the short day flowering dark green kind called Basella alba.)
Abelmoschus esculentus - Okra
Edible Portion: Pods, Flowers, Seeds, Leaves, Vegetable
A tropical annual herb. It grows erect, often with hairy stems. It mostly grows about 1 m tall but can be 3.5 m tall. It becomes woody at the base. The leaves have long stalks up to 30 cm long. Leaves vary in shape but are roughly heart shaped with lobes and teeth along the edge. Upper leaves are more deeply divided than lower ones. The flowers are yellow with red hearts. The fruits are green, long and ribbed. They have 5-7 ribs. They are 7.5-15 cm long. The seeds are 4-5 mm across. They are round and dark green. Many varieties exist.
Chenopodium album - Lamb's Quarters
Edible Portion: Leaves, Seeds, Sprouts, Flowers, Vegetable, Tea
An annual plant. It grows to 1 m high and spreads to 1 m across. The stem is erect. The stems are succulent and without hairs. They often have soft mealy lumps which can be rubbed off. The leaves are simple, with one at each node, and occurring alternately up the stem. The leaves are oval and wedge shaped with saw like edges. They are 5-12 cm long by 3-10 cm wide. The leaf stalk is usually shorter than the leaf blade. The under surface of the leaf often has a white mealy layer which can be rubbed off. The flowers occur in dense white spikes. The flowers occur at the tip and ends of branches. The fruit is a pod. It is small and roundish and papery. It opens around the tip. The pod contains a shiny black seed. Seed are 1.2-1.8 mm across.Seeds can occur in very large numbers.
Cleome gynandra - Cat's-whiskers
Edible Portion: Leaves, Flowers, Pods, Seeds, Vegetable, Caution
An annual herb. It grows to 0.6-0.9 m. It has a long tap root. It is erect and somewhat hairy. It usually has purple stems. The leaves occur one after another along the stalk. The leaf stalk is long. There are 5-7 leaflets which are unequal and spread out at the end. They are oblong and about 2.5-6 cm long by 1.4-3.2 cm wide. The leaflets are pointed at the base and a rounder near the tip with a rounder point at the tip. There are fine teeth along the edges of the leaves. The flowers are white or purple They occur in long flower clusters at the end of branches. These are 30 cm long. The flower clusters are showy with white or purplish flowers and a spidery like appearance. The fruit are a slender capsule with 2 valves and with many small seeds. They are 5-10 cm long and very narrow. The seeds are kidney shaped and rough. They are brown and have fine lines along them. They are 1 -1.5 mm across.
Ipomoea aquatica - Kangkong
Edible Portion: Leaves, Vegetable, Fruit, Roots
Kangkong is a creeping sweet potato like plant. It has hollow stems and can float on water. The leaves are green and are normally not divided like some sweet potato leaves, but the shape and size varies a little between different kinds. The trumpet shaped flower looks like a sweet potato flower and is normally white. The runners develop roots at the nodes and also branch.This branching increases when tips are picked off. Some variation in leaf shape can be observed. Leaf shape is less variable than in the related sweet potato, but narrow and broad leafed kinds occur. White and green stemmed kinds occur. Green stemmed kinds have more cold tolerance than white stemmed.
Common Names: Kangkong, Ajuwaella, Antarika, Arkala, Ballesoppu, Bhui koohala, Bilebo, Bola-bola, Boong, Chidledelane, Demblamuna, Dine thamnunglai, Djambo, Efo odo, Emene, Emenninodo, Engtsai, Galatgat, Ganthian, Itambeleta, Jal kalmi, Kalamasaga, Kalamba-saga, Kalembula, Kalmi ara, Kalmi sag, Kalmi shak, Kalmi-sag, Kalmisak, Kalmou, Kalmua, Kamli basak, Kangkung, Kango, Kankon, Kankoon, Kankun, Kangkuang, Karamta, Karembua, Karmbhu, Kaoasang, Karmi ara, Karmotabhaji, Kazun-galay, Kazun-ywet, Kholmo, Koilangu, Kolamni, Kollamni, Kolom sak, Kolmi, Kolmou, Kolmow sak, Kozhuppa, Kulum, Mande, Mandemaigong, Monde moigong, Nadishaka, Nal, Nalanibhaji, Nali-ka-sag, Nali, Nallibhaji, Nari, Narini bhaji, Nelichi bhaji, Ong choy, Pak boong, Pak bung, Panbhaji, Patua-sag, Phak bong, Phak bung, Pond Morning Glory, Quelo, Rau muong che, Rau muong, Sarnali, Sarkareivalli, Swamp Morning Glory, Tach, Talata, Tegada, Te kangkong, Trakuen, Tutikura, Tuti-saga, Ung tsai, Ung ts'oi, Vellaikeerai, Vellay keeray, Weng cai, Ye-kazun
Synonyms:
Convolvulus repens Vahl;
Ipomoea natans Dinter & Suess.;
Ipomoea repens Roth;
Ipomoea reptans Poiret;
Ipomoea sagittaefolia Hochr.;
Ipomoea subdentata Miquel;
Brassica oleracea var. acephala - Kale
Edible Portion: Leaves, Vegetable, Flowers
A cabbage plant. The leaves are ruffled or crinkled but some are more smooth than normal kales. The leaf shape and colour varies considerably. The flowers are yellow or white.
