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
812 Issues in this Publication (Showing issues 5000 - 5000) Previous | Next
Citrus japonica cv margarita - Kumquat, Oval Kumquat
Edible Portion: Fruit, Herb, Flavouring, Peel
An evergreen shrub up to 4 m high. It spreads to 2 m across. The stem is slender and branching. It has a rounded crown. It has spiny branches and shiny oval leaves with pointed tips. The leaves are leathery. Flowers are white with 5 petals. They occur singly and have a perfume. Fruit are very small and about 2.5 cm across. They are divided into only 3-6 sections. There are 2-5 seeds.
Citrus latifolia - Bears' Lime, Tahitian Lime, Persian
Edible Portion: Fruit
A small evergreen tree. It is almost thornless. It grows 1.8-4.5 m high. The branches droop. The leaves have broad, flat-winged leaf stalks. Young leaves are mauve. The flowers have a purple tinge and have a scent. They occur throughout the year. The fruit is medium sized, green and very sour. The fruit are round. They are 3-4 cm across. They can be 8-10 cm across. The skin is thin and smooth. The skin remains bright green when ripe. The pulp is green and seedless.
Citrus paradisi - Grapefruit
Edible Portin: Fruit, Herb
Probably a natural hybrid between sweet orange and pomelo. A medium sized evergreen tree up to 10-15 m high. They spread 5 m across. The stem is stout and crooked. The branches hang down giving a rounded crown. The thorns are small. The leaves are dark shiny green and sword shaped. They can be 18 cm long. The leaves are leathery and they have rounded teeth along the edge. The leaf stalk usually has a broad wing. The flowers are creamy white and large. The flowers occur either singly or in clusters (2-20) in the axils of leaves. The flowers are 4-5 cm across. The fruit are large, yellow and in clusters. Fruit can be 9-15 cm across. Fruit are very juicy with a sweet-sour pulp. The juice sacs are large but closely packed. There are many cultivated varieties.
Citrus swinglei - Malayan Kumquat, Hedge Lime
Edible Portion: Fruit, Spice
The plant grows 1-5 m high. It can be grown in a pot as a small plant. The plants have thorns and the leaves are long and narrow and do not have a citrus smell. The flowers are white and have a smell. They appear in clusters of 1-5. The fruit are round and 2.5 cm across. The skin is smooth soft and shiny. Fruit are green but turn yellow when ripe.
Citrus unshiu - Satsuma Mandarin, Satsuma Orange
Edible Portion: Fruit
A small evergreen tree. It has spines. It grows 3-4 m high. The leaves are thin and slightly leathery. They are smooth, and shiny on the upper surface. They are 4-8 cm long. The leaf stalk is 2-4 cm long and has wings. The flowers can occur singly or in small groups in the axils of leaves. The fruit are round and have a thin skin. The fruit has segments that separate easily and a skin that is easily removed. They do not have seeds.
Clymenia polyandra - Clymenia, Polyandra Kumquat
Edible Portion: Fruit
A citrus relative. The tree is 5-8 m tall. The leaves are large (18 cm x 6 cm) and simple. Young leaves have lobes. The leaves are more thin and papery than other citrus. The leaves taper towards the tip and have notched edges. The leaf stalks are short and without wings. It does not have thorns. The flowers are dark yellow and 2.5-3 cm across. They occur either singly, or as 2 -4 together, in the axils of leaves. The fruit is yellow and the size of a large lime. They are 7-10 cm long by 6-8 cm wide. The flesh is edible. The skin of the fruit can irritate human skin. The seeds are flattish with lines on them.
Coccinia grandis - Ivy Gourd
Edible Portion: Leaves, Fruit, Tubers, Root, Vegetable, Seeds
A pumpkin family plant. It is a climbing or trailing herb. It can climb 20 m high. It has single tendrils. It has long tuberous roots. The leaves are heart shaped, with the lobes towards the base in an angular shape. The leaves are 5-10 cm across. The edges of the leaves are irregular. The flowers occur as male and female flowers on separate plants. The flowers are large and white and occur singly. The fruit is oblong and up to 10 cm long by 2.5 cm across. It is green with white stripes. The fruit become bright red when mature. The seeds are white or light brown. They are hairy and flattened with a broad rim.
Combretum indicum - Rangoon Creeper, Chinese Honeysuckle
Edible Portion: Fruit, Seeds, Leaves, Stems
A scrambling shrub or vine. The stem is strong and woody. It branches freely. It can climb to 20 m high. The plant is erect and shrub like when young. The twigs have soft brown hairs when young. The leaves are opposite and oblong. They have heart shaped bases. They are 8-18 cm long and 4-6 cm wide. They have long sharp tips and prominent veins. The flowers are at the ends of branches or in the axils of leaves, sometimes in large clusters. There are broad bracts near the flowers. The flowers have a smell and vary between white, pink and purple. The colour changes and darkens over 3 days. The fruit is narrow and long. It is dry and light and has 5 wings along the sides.
Cordia alliodora - Ecuador Laurel, Spanish Elm
Edible Portion: Fruit, Bark - Spice
A tree. It grows 12 m high. The trunk is smooth and light coloured. There or four branches develop from a swelling on the stem. The leaf stalks are 1-3 cm long. The leaf blades are oblong and 10-20 cm long by 3-8 cm wide. The flowers are in a loosely branched arrangement. This is 10-30 cm across. The fruit is about 5 mm long.
Cupaniopsis anacardioides - Tuckeroo, Beach Tamarind, Carrotwood
Edible Portion: Fruit
An evergreen tree. It grows 8-15 m high. It can spread 5-15 m across. It has a dense rounded crown. The trunk is smooth and pale grey. The inner bark is orange. The leaves have leaflets along the stalk. The leaves are 10-20 cm long with 2-6 pairs of opposite leaflets. The leaflets are leathery and dark green. They are oblong with a rounded tip. They are 7-10 cm long by 3-5 cm wide. The flowers are greenish-white. The fruit occur in long chains. They are orange. They are leathery and have 3-6 lobes. They are 1-2 cm across. The seeds are black. They have a reddish attachment.
