Hemiboea bicornuta

Family: Gesneriaceae

What it is like

A herb. It has stems 20-100 cm long. It keeps growing from year to year and has runners. The leaves are opposite and simple. They are 7-20 cm long by 3-5 cm wide and on leaf stalks 2-6 cm long. The flowers occur in groups of 3 or more. The fruit is a capsule which is narrow and slightly curved. It is 2.2-2.5 cm long and 3-4 mm wide. The seeds are narrow and 0.5 mm long.

There are 23 Hemiboea species. They are mostly in China and Japan.

Where it is found

It is a subtropical plant. In Taiwan it grows at low to medium altitudes on the edges of moist forests and near streams. It grows between 300-2,200 m above sea level.

Countries/locations it is found in

Asia, Japan, Ryukyu, Taiwan

How it is used for food

Edible parts

How it is grown

Its other names

Local names

Synonyms

Chirita bicornuta Hayata; Hemiboea merrillii Yamamoto; Hemiboiea follicularis auct. non Clarke: Yamamoto;