- Peristrophe roxburghiana
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Peristrophe roxburghiana Scientific classification Kingdom: Plantae (unranked): Angiosperms (unranked): Eudicots (unranked): Asterids Order: Lamiales Family: Acanthaceae Genus: Peristrophe Species: P. roxburghiana Binomial name Peristrophe roxburghiana
(Roem. & Schult.) Bremek.Peristrophe roxburghiana (syn. Peristrophe tinctoria Nees, Peristrophe baphica (Spreng) Bremek.; also called magenta plant, or lá cẩm in Vietnamese) is a flowering plant in the family Acanthaceae, native to southeastern Asia from Assam south to Sri Lanka and east to mainland Southeast Asia, Java, southern China, and Taiwan.[1][2][3]
It is a herbaceous perennial plant growing to 50–100 cm tall. The leaves are lanceolate to ovoid-acute, 2–7.5 cm long and 1–3.5 cm wide. The flowers are two-lobed, the long axis up to 5 cm long; they are magenta to reddish-violet.[1][2][4][5]
Contents
Cultivation and uses
Culinary use
Xôi lá cẩm
An extract of its leaves 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.
References
- ^ a b Flora of Taiwan: Peristrophe roxburghiana.
- ^ a b Flora of China (draft): Acanthaceae.
- ^ Germplasm Resources Information Network: Peristrophe roxburghiana.
- ^ Taiwan Forestry Flora of Taiwan 4: 183: in Chinese; google translation.
- ^ photo
Categories:- Acanthaceae
- Vietnamese ingredients
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