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January 2, 2020

Gomphocarpus fruticosus

Gomphocarpus fruticosus

Gomphocarpus fruticosus is not in the Expanded Monograph processing cue. If you want to add it to the cue, or if you can provide any additional information, photos or reliable use records of this muthi plant, please leave a comment below, or in The Muthi Flora of southern Africa Facebook group.

Traditional Medicinal Uses of Gomphocarpus fruticosus

Indications: Administered to both people and animals. Applied in a magical sense. Caution: Harmful to people or animals.

Eco-Gardening

Gomphocarpus fruticosus is a slender, erect, branching perennial shrub that contains milky latex. It has dark green, lanceolate leaves with creamy small flowers borne between summer and autumn as pendulums together in groups of up to 10. The fruits are hairy green heart-shaped follicles, containing small black seeds that appear when the fruits burst open, each seed has a long silky hair allowing for it to be transported by wind. Gomphocarpus fruticosus is mildly poisonous but many butterfly species feed on it. The butterflies then also become poisonous and that protects them from predation. It can be grown in almost any soil type and is fairly short-lived but easy to propagate. (Credit: Wildflower Nursery)

References

Arnold. T.H., Prentice, C.A., Hawker, L.C., Snyman, E.E., Tomalin, M., Crouch, N.R. and Pottas-Bircher, C. (2002). Medicinal and magical plants of southern Africa: an annotated checklist. Strelitzia 13. South African National Biodiversity Institute, Pretoria.

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Additional Data (Advanced Search Fields)

Synonyms
Asclepias abyssinica (Hochst.) N.E.Br., Asclepias albida N.E.Br.. Asclepias crassifolia Decne., Asclepias crinita (Bertol.) N.E.Br.. Asclepias euphorbioides A.Chev., Asclepias flavida N.E.Br., Asclepias fruticosa L., Asclepias fruticosa L. var. angustissima (Engl.) Schltr.. Asclepias glabra Mill., Asclepias lanata (E.Mey.) Druce, Asclepias phillipsiae N.E.Br., Asclepias pubiseta N.E.Br., Asclepias setosa Forssk., Gomphocarpus abyssinicus Hochst., Gomphocarpus cornutus Decne.. Gomphocarpus crinitus Bertol., Gomphocarpus frutescens E.Mey.. Gomphocarpus frutieosus (L.) W.T.Aiton var. angustissimus Engl.; var. purpureus Schweinf., Gomphocarpus lanatus E.Mey., Gomphocarpus purpurascens A. Rich.. Gomphocarpus setosus (Forssk.) Decne., Gomphocarpus verticillatus Turcz.
Vernacular Names
gansie, melkbos (Afrikaans); milkweed, narrow-leaved cotton bush, wild cotton, wild swans (English); msingala salugazi, singala salugazi, uSingalwesalukazi (Zuu)
Family
Asclepiadaceae
Broad Use Categories
Eco-Gardening, Magical Use (Not Categorized), Medicinal Use (Not Categorized), Poisonous, Veterinary Use
Plant Type
Herb
Parts Used
Root
Origin
Indigenous
Distribution
Namibia (N), Botswana (B), Swaziland (S), Limpopo Province (LIM), North-West Province (NW), Gauteng Province (G), Mpumalanga Province (M), Free State Province (FS), KwaZulu-Natal Province (KZN), Northern Cape Province (NC), Western Cape Province (WC), Eastern Cape Province (EC)
Conservation Status
(LC) According to the Red List of South African plants, Gomphocarpus fruticosus is not threatened and is assessed as Least Concern (LC).
Trade
Traded
Monograph Type
Basic
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