Cocculus orbiculatus (PROSEA)
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Introduction |
Cocculus orbiculatus (L.) DC.
- Protologue: Syst. nat. 1: 523 (1817).
Synonyms
Cocculus trilobus (Thunberg) DC. (1817), Cocculus sarmentosus (Lour.) Diels (1910).
Vernacular names
- Vietnam: dây xanh, dây một, mộc phòng ky.
Distribution
Nepal, India, China, Taiwan, Japan, Hawaii, Indo-China, Thailand, Peninsular Malaysia, Singapore, north-eastern Sumatra, western and central Java, and the Philippines; also in Réunion and Mauritius, but there possibly introduced.
Uses
In Vietnam, the stem is used as a diuretic to treat oedema. The roots are considered febrifuge and used to treat epilepsy. In traditional medicine in China, the stems and leaves are applied against flatulence, stomach-ache and oedema. In Thailand, the leaves are used to produce a jelly.
Observations
A slender herbaceous or slightly woody climber, with stem up to 1.5 mm in diameter; leaves broadly elliptical to narrowly elliptical or ovate, 3-10 cm × 1-5.5 cm, base 3(-5)-veined with veins usually not running parallel to margins and becoming indistinct at or below the middle of the leaf; flowers whitish, female ones with 6 carpels; drupe rotund in outline, 4-5 mm in diameter, dark blue. In South-East Asia, C. orbiculatus often occurs near the sea-shore, but sometimes also inland on limestone terraces.
Selected sources
247, 249, 402, 403, 671, 981.
Main genus page
Authors
Francisca Murti Setyowati
