Rumex (PROSEA Vegetables)

Plant Resources of South-East Asia Introduction

List of species

Rumex L.

Family: Polygonaceae

Major species and synonyms

• Rumex acetosa L.

• Rumex hydrolapathum Hudson.

• Rumex patientia L.

• Rumex rugosus Campdera, synonym: R. ambiguus Gren.

• Rumex sagittatus Thunberg.

• Rumex vesicarius L.

Vernacular names

General:

• Sorrel (En)
• Oseille, surelle (Fr)
• Indonesia: daun suring, surengan.

R. acetosa :

• Cambodia: slök mchuu
• Vietnam: rau chua, rau bó xôi, toan thảo.

R. hydrolapathum :

• Philippines: gabo.

R. vesicarius :

• Thailand: phakbuak, sompukhaek (northern).

Distribution

Worldwide, chiefly in northern temperate regions, sometimes cultivated. In South-East Asia wild plants are mostly escapes from cultivation.

Uses

The sour leaves and petioles are eaten raw or cooked as a vegetable, but their use is not very popular in South-East Asia.

Observations

• Annual (R. vesicarius) or perennial, mostly very variable herbs, sometimes more than 2 m tall (R. sagittatus).
• Leaves spirally arranged, the lower ones mostly in a radical rosette (except R. vesicarius), sheathing at base and provided with an amplexicaul ocrea.
• Flowers in spurious whorls which are combined in racemes or panicles.
• Fruit usually a sharply trigonous samara.

Can be cultivated in the tropics at higher altitudes in fertile soil. For good leaf production, the inflorescences should be removed.

Selected sources

7, 13, 44, 53, 57, 66.