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Introduction |
| General importance |  
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| Geographic coverage Africa |
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| Geographic coverage World |
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| Medicinal |
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Basananthe sandersonii (Harv.) De Wild.
- Protologue: Blumea 21(2): 339 (1973).
- Family: Passifloraceae
Synonyms
- Tryphostemma longifolium Harms (1891).
Origin and geographic distribution
Basananthe sandersonii occurs from Tanzania south to Zimbabwe, Mozambique, South Africa and Swaziland.
Uses
In Tanzania the roots are chewed and the juice taken internally to treat snakebites.
Description
Perennial herb up to 60 cm tall, with woody rootstock; stems erect or prostrate at base. Leaves alternate, simple; stipules linear, 1.5–5 mm long; petiole 0–5 mm long; blade orbicular, broadly ovate, obovate or elliptical, 2–16 cm × 1–4 cm, base rounded or cuneate, apex rounded or obtuse, margins toothed, glaucous beneath. Inflorescence an axillary cyme, 1–3-flowered, often with a tendril 0.5–2(–5) cm long; peduncle up to 4.5 cm long; bracts 1–4 mm long. Flowers bisexual, regular, campanulate; pedicel 3–17 mm long, pale yellow; hypanthium 2–4 mm wide; sepals 5(–7), 4.5–8.5 mm long, apex obtuse; petals absent or rarely 2; outer corona blue, with tube 1–2 mm high and threads 0.5–1.5 mm long, inner corona 1–1.5 mm high, cup-shaped; stamens 5, inserted at the inner corona, filaments 1.5–4 mm long; ovary superior, obovoid, 1–1.5 mm long, 1-celled, styles 3(–4), free, 3–4 mm long, stigma head-shaped. Fruit an obovoid capsule 1.5–2 cm long, pendulous, 1–4-seeded. Seeds 6–10 mm long.
Other botanical information
Basananthe comprises about 25 species in continental Africa.
Basananthe heterophylla
Basananthe heterophylla Schinz is an annual or occasionally short-lived perennial herb up to 50 cm tall, occurring in Namibia and Botswana at 900–1500 m altitude. A root decoction from it is used in Namibia to treat coughs.
Ecology
Basananthe sandersonii occurs in grassland, open scrub vegetation and forest edges on sandy and rocky soils, up to 1700 m altitude.
Genetic resources
Basananthe sandersonii is a widespread pioneer plant and thus not at risk of genetic erosion.
Prospects
In view of the medicinal use on record and the complete lack of chemical and pharmacological data, research into the properties of Basananthe sandersonii may prove worthwhile.
Major references
- de Wilde, W.J.J.O., 1973. Revision of Basananthe, formerly Tryphostemma (Passifloraceae). Blumea 21: 327–356.
- Kokwaro, J.O., 1993. Medicinal plants of East Africa. 2nd Edition. Kenya Literature Bureau, Nairobi, Kenya. 401 pp.
- Neuwinger, H.D., 2000. African traditional medicine: a dictionary of plant use and applications. Medpharm Scientific, Stuttgart, Germany. 589 pp.
Other references
- Bernhard, A., 1999. Flower structure, development, and systematics in Passifloraceae and in Abatia (Flacourtiaceae). International Journal of Plant Science 160(1): 135–150.
- von Koenen, E., 2001. Medicinal, poisonous and edible plants in Namibia. Klaus Hess Verlag, Göttingen, Germany. 336 pp.
Author(s)
- A. de Ruijter, PROTA Network Office Europe, Wageningen University, P.O. Box 341, 6700 AH Wageningen, Netherlands
Correct citation of this article
de Ruijter, A., 2007. Basananthe sandersonii (Harv.) W.J.de Wilde. In: Schmelzer, G.H. & Gurib-Fakim, A. (Editors). PROTA (Plant Resources of Tropical Africa / Ressources végétales de l’Afrique tropicale), Wageningen, Netherlands. Accessed 3 April 2025.
- See the Prota4U database.