Ipomoea carnea, the pink
morning glory, is a flowering
plant having beautiful flowers and heart-shaped leaves that are a rich green
and 6–9 inches long. It can be easily grown from seeds which are toxic and
it can be hazardous to cattle; the toxicity is related to the bioaccumulation of selenium
species in leaves but mostly in seeds.
Since not eaten by cattle, they grow wild in Tamilnadu (called locally Neyveli Kattaamanakku) and has
acquired the status of a weed especially in water bodies and lot of
wasteful expenditure has been done in the past in controlling this plant from
water bodies and channels. There are some farmers who use the leaf
decoction as a bio pesticide or pest repellant. One can also make good quality liquid manure or compost using these leaves and thus the problem of this plant as weed can be effectively converted into an opportunity as the leaves are also rich in Nitrogen..
Anyhow, this plant has lot of medicinal values though readers
are advised against self-medication of any sorts. It contains a component
identical to marsilin, a sedative and anticonvulsant, .A glycosidic saponin has
also been purified from I. carnea with ant carcinogenic and
oxytoxic properties.
Interestingly, the garland makers use the leaves of these plants
and they collect the leaves from road sides and water bodies to fill the gaps
between the flowers as it gives a good contrasting green colour to the flower
garlands.
(Information from From :
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ipomoea_carnea)
No comments:
Post a Comment