Dicliptera tinctoria
| Dicliptera tinctoria | |
|---|---|
| |
Scientific classification 
| |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| Clade: | Tracheophytes |
| Clade: | Angiosperms |
| Clade: | Eudicots |
| Clade: | Asterids |
| Order: | Lamiales |
| Family: | Acanthaceae |
| Genus: | Peristrophe |
| Species: | P. bivalvis
|
| Binomial name | |
| Peristrophe bivalvis | |
| Synonyms | |
|
Hypoestes bodinieri H. Lév. | |
Peristrophe bivalvis[1] is the accepted name[2] of a species in the genus Peristrophe and the family Acanthaceae (previously described here as the synonym P. roxburghiana). It may be called magenta plant, or lá cẩm in Vietnamese and native to southeastern Asia from Assam south to Sri Lanka and east to mainland Southeast Asia, Java, southern China, and Taiwan.[3][4][5]
Description
It is a herbaceous perennial plant growing to 0.3–1 m tall. The leaves are lanceolate to ovoid-acute, 20–75 mm long and 10–35 mm wide. The flowers are two-lobed, the long axis up to 50 mm long; they are magenta to reddish-violet.[3][4][6][7]
Cultivation and uses
Culinary use
An extract of its leaves is used as a food dye, and imparts a magenta tone to some Vietnamese foods, particularly in a taro-filled cake called bánh da lợn and glutinous rice dishes such as xôi lá cẩm, a sweet dessert.
Medicinal use
The plant is used in traditional Chinese medicine. The leaves have been used in water extract decoctions for the treatment of ailments including cough, dysentery, diarrhoea and bronchitis.[8]
References
- ^ Interpr. Rumph. Herb. Amboin. 476 (1917)
- ^ "Peristrophe bivalvis (L.) Merr. — The Plant List". www.theplantlist.org. Retrieved 4 October 2018.
- ^ a b Flora of Taiwan: Peristrophe roxburghiana Archived 2009-08-14 at the Wayback Machine.
- ^ a b Flora of China (draft): Acanthaceae.
- ^ Germplasm Resources Information Network: Peristrophe bivalvis.
- ^ Taiwan Forestry Flora of Taiwan 4: 183: in Chinese; google translation.
- ^ "爵床科 九頭獅子草屬 山藍 (葉花) 最南點 Peristrophe roxburghiana". flickr.com. 2006-10-12. Retrieved 4 October 2018.
- ^ Tanaka, Yoshitaka; Van Ke, Nguyen (2007). Edible Wild Plants of Vietnam: The Bountiful Garden. Thailand: Orchid Press. p. 16. ISBN 978-9745240896.