Edible: Leaves, Pods, Flowers - tea, Flowers
A perennial herb plant. It grows to 3-4.5 m tall and spreads to 4 m wide. The stem is slender and twines. The leaves are green and divided. They are 6-12 cm long. The 5-9 leaflets are oval. The flowers are bright purple. They are pea like and 3-5 cm across. They have yellow tinted white centres. The flowers occur either singly or in pairs. The fruit are flat pods. They are 7 cm long. After the seeds fall the pods twist. The seeds are dark brown to black.
It is a tropical plant. It will grow on most soils. It needs a sheltered sunny position. It is drought and frost tender. Mostly they grow on the edge of forests. It grows where the minimum temperature is 16°C. In Nepal it grows to about 250 m altitude in hedges and thickets. It can grow in arid places. In XTBG Yunnan. It suits hardiness zones 10-12.
Common Names: Butterfly Bean, Darwin pea, Streaky Bean, Anchan, Ang chan, Anjan, Aparijita, Aporajita, Asian pigeon wings, Aung-mai-hpyu, Aung-me-nyo, Azulejo, Bejuco de conchitos, Bunga biru, Bunga telang, Campanilla, Cordofan pea, Dau biec, Gokran, Gokurna, Kacang, Kachang telang, Kakkanam, Kakkattan, Kelang, Kembang telang, Kembang teleng, Latoalawa, Menteleng, Mparia, Nanreethimaa, Oporajita, Papito, Pe-nauk-ni, Pokindang, Pukunggan, Samsampin, Sangu pushpam, Supli, Uang-chan, Zapatillo de la reina
Synonyms:
Clitoria albiflora Mattei;
Clitoria bracteata Poiret;
Clitoria coelestris Siebert & Voss;
Clitoria parviflora Raf.;
Clitoria pilosula Benth.;
Clitoria tanganicensis Micheli;
Clitoria ternatea L. var. pilosula (Benth.) Baker;
Clitoria ternatensium Crantz;
Lathyrus spectabilis Forsskal;
Ternatea ternatea (L.) Kuntze;
Ternatea vulgaris Kuntze;
Ternatea vulgaris Humboldt;