Didymocarpus villosus

Family: Gesneriaceae

What it is like

A herb. It grows 15 cm high. The leaf stalk is 1-16 mm long. The leaves are oval and wedge shaped. The leaf blade is 2.5-7.2 cm long by 2-5 cm wide. There are soft hairs on the upper surface. The flowers are purple. They occur in many flowered flat topped arrangements. The fruit is a capsule. The tip is curved.

There are about 180 Didymocarpus species.

Where it is found

It is a temperate plant. In Nepal it grows at 1000-2400 m altitude. In China it grows on stony cliffs in valleys between 2,100-2,700 m above sea level.

Countries/locations it is found in

Asia, Bhutan, China, Himalayas, India, Nepal, Tibet

How it is used for food

The tender stems are cooked as a vegetable.

Edible parts

Leaves

How it is grown

It is grown by seeds or by splitting the rhizome.

Its other names

Local names

Chang mao chang shuo ju tai, Kiya

Synonyms

Henckelia villosa (D. Don) Sprengel; Roettlera villosa (D. Don) Kuntze;