Argyreia mollis (PROSEA)

Plant Resources of South-East Asia Introduction

List of species

Argyreia mollis (Burm.f.) Choisy

Protologue: Mém. Soc. Phys. Genève 6: 421 (1833).

• Indonesia: areuy tatapayan (Sundanese), kendal sapi (Javanese), butetulupan (Bali)
• Thailand: khruea phuu ngoen (Prachin Buri), yaan taan (Songkhla)
• Vietnam: bạc thau lông mềm.

The Andaman Islands, southern Burma (Myanmar), Indo-China, Hainan, southern Thailand, Peninsular Malaysia, Sumatra, Java and Bali.

In Java a decoction of the roots, together with Alyxia , Anethum and Callicarpa leaves, is used as a stomachic. The juice is applied to treat mild forms of eye inflammation. Leaves mixed with several other plants are applied to boils. The stems are sometimes used for binding.

A liana up to 10 m long with densely appressed-pilose twining stems, later glabrescent; leaves elliptical to narrowly oblong, 4-15 cm × 1.5-7 cm, acute to rounded at base, densely silvery tomentose beneath; bracts small, caducous; corolla shallowly lobed, 5-6.5 cm long, pale violet or pink with white base, rarely entirely white; fruit subglobose, c. 10 mm in diameter, red or orange-red. A. mollis is locally common in secondary forest, teak forest and brushwood, sometimes in hedges, up to 1500 m altitude.

121, 247, 334, 598.

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Trimurti H. Wardini