Halopegia blumei

Family: Marantaceae

What it is like

An erect herb. It forms tillers. It grows 30-75 cm tall. There are several rhizomes or underground stems which are swollen at the tip. These form into 3-4 jointed tubers up to 2.5 cm long. There are 4-8 leaves. The leaf stalk is 15-25 cm long. It forms a sheath. The leaf blade is 12-28 cm long by 5-11 cm wide. The leaves are thin and end abruptly. The flowers can be at the end of the plant or in the axils of leaves. The flower spike was 15-20 cm long. There are 10 bracts 5-10 cm long. The flowers are in pairs. The fruit is one seeded. The fruit is about 8 mm long.

Where it is found

A tropical plant. It grows in shady places on heavy soils. The aerial parts of the plant can die off at the end of the wet season.

Countries/locations it is found in

Asia, Indochina, Indonesia, Laos, Myanmar, SE Asia, Thailand, Vietnam

How it is used for food

The tubers are eaten cooked or roasted.

Edible parts

Tubers, root

How it is grown

Plants can be grown from tubers or from seed.

Its other names

Local names

Dong nam, Jelantir, Langkuwas, Patat, To:ng chi:ng

Synonyms

Maranta blumei Koernicke; Clinogyne blumei (Koernicke)Bentham; Donax blumei (Koernicke)K. Schumann;