Grewia tenax
Uses
India (Rajasthan, western ): acrid, orange fruit usually eaten raw. Leaves boiled and eaten as vegetable. Sudan (Kordofan, northern and southern ): fruit eaten fresh, or dried for later consumption. A drink is prepared by soaking the fruit overnight, hand-pressing, sieving, and sweetening. A porridge, called Nesha, is also prepared from this drink, by the addition of custard [sic] and flour. Ethnomedical use: Nesha is given to mothers to improve their health and lactation.
Additional Information
- Name Authority:
- (Forsk.) Fiori; Aschers. & Schweinf. ex Christensen.
- Vernaculars:
- India: Gangeran, Gangara. Sudan (Arabic): Gaddem.
- Misc:
- Chemical composition (Sudan sample): Protein (crude) = 6.3% (dry). Fat = 0.4% (dry). Fibre (crude) = 8.1% (dry). Ash = 4.5% (dry). Carbohydrate (soluble): Starch = 15.1% dry). Sucrose = 1.6% (dry). D-glucose = 21.0% (dry). D-fructose = 24.3% (dry). Amino acids (g [16g N]-1): Aspartic acid = 8.1g. Threonine = 2.1g. Serine = 2.4g. Glutamic acid = 6.2g. Proline = 11.6g. Glysine = 3.5g. Alanine = 2.4g. Valine = 2.8g. Cysteine = 1.0g. Methionine = 0.7g. Isoleucine = 2.0g. Leucine = 3.4g Tyrosine = 2.5g. Phenylalanine = 2.2g. Lysine = 2.0g. Histidine = 1.1g. Arginine = 3.2g. Minerals: Sulphur = 0.10% (dry). Potassium = 0.08% (dry). Magnesium = 0.17% (dry). Calcium = 0.61% (dry). Na = 0.01% (dry). K = 1.45% (dry). Zinc = 21mg/kg-1 (dry). Iron = 74mg/kg-1 (dry). Manganese = 10mg/kg-1 (dry). Copper = 7mg/kg-1 (dry). The seeds, which are edible, contain 80% unsaturated oils. Soil types favored by plant - India: rocky, gravelly piedmont plains and hills. Sudan: sandy depressions, dunes, clay, temporary pools, rocky screes.
