Purplebloom wild grape
Cyphostemma junceum

Family: Vitaceae

What it is like

A herb that keeps growing from year to year. It is fleshy and grows 1.3 m high. It has a tuberous rootstock. The leaves have 3-5 leaflets. The leaflets are 30 cm long by 5 cm wide. There are teeth along the edges. The flowers are in 25 cm long groups at the top of the plant. The petals are greenish-red. The fruit is reddish-purple. It is 1 cm long by 0.6 cm wide. There is one seed 7 mm long by 4 mm wide. It has ridges along it.

Where it is found

It is a tropical plant. It grows in woodland.

Countries/locations it is found in

Africa, Angola, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Central Africa, Congo, Côte d'Ivoire, East Africa, Ethiopia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinée, Ivory Coast, Kenya, Malawi, Mozambique, Nigeria, Southern Africa, Sudan, Tanzania, Togo, Uganda, West Africa, Zambia, Zimbabwe

How it is used for food

The ripe fruit can be eaten.

Edible parts

Fruit

How it is grown

Its other names

Local names

Mnuwake-munda, Mupassa, Zindakubaya

Synonyms

Cissus jatrophoides (Bak.) Planch.; Cissus juncea Webb; Vitis juncea (Webb) Bak.; Vitis jatrophoides Welw. ex Bak.;