Grewia villosa is a shrub, often scrambling and hardly exceeding 4 m in height. Leaves are fairly large, serrated and heart-shaped. It grows naturally, mainly in dry habitats. It is common in most of the semi-arid parts of Eastern Africa but may now be rare in parts of its natural distribution. It can be seen in Ein Gedi oasis in Israel, and in South Africa, where it is common. Its ripe copper-coloured fruits are eaten in East Africa.
| Grewia villosa | |
|---|---|
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Scientific classification 
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| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| Clade: | Tracheophytes |
| Clade: | Angiosperms |
| Clade: | Eudicots |
| Clade: | Rosids |
| Order: | Malvales |
| Family: | Malvaceae |
| Genus: | Grewia |
| Species: | G. villosa
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| Binomial name | |
| Grewia villosa | |
| Synonyms[2] | |
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Uses
editThe fruit of the Grewia villosa were eaten both while immature and green and also once they had ripened and hardened to a dark, reddish-brown. The bark was stripped off and crushed in water or chewed to a pulp which was used to wash the body as well as to clean the hair and disinfect the scalp [3]
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ Oldfield, S. (2020). "Grewia villosa". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2020: e.T19218725A149819446. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2020-1.RLTS.T19218725A149819446.en. Retrieved 18 November 2021.
- ^ "Grewia villosa Willd. — the Plant List".
- ^ G. Miller, Anthony; Morris, Miranda (1988). Plants of Dhofar. Oman: The Sultanate of Oman. p. 284. ISBN 071570808-2.
- Maundu, P. M. ; Ngugi, G. W. ; Kabuye, C. H. S., 1999. Traditional food plants of Kenya. Kenya Resource Centre for Indigenous Knowledge, National Museums of Kenya, 270 pages
External links
edit
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