Landolphia calabarica
| Landolphia calabarica | |
|---|---|
| Scientific name | Landolphia calabarica |
| Genus | Landolphia |
| Family | Apocynaceae |
| Order | Gentianales |
| Native range | Wet tropical western Africa |
| Growth form | Woody, tendril-climbing liane |
| Fruit | Ripe fruit described as edible |
Landolphia calabarica is a woody, tendril-climbing liane of wet tropical western Africa. Kew's current taxonomic treatment accepts the name and records Carpodinus calabarica and Landolphia bracteata as synonyms.[1]
Description[edit | edit source]
The plant is described as a climbing shrub or liane reaching about 7 m, with woody perennial stems that attach to other plants by tendrils.[2] It occurs in forest areas across western tropical Africa, from Sierra Leone toward southern Nigeria; the wider native-country listing includes Benin, Ghana, Guinea, Ivory Coast, Liberia, Nigeria and Sierra Leone.[1][2] Historical useful-plant documentation describes white sticky latex as without worth.[2]
Cultivation[edit | edit source]
Soil and water[edit | edit source]
The forest and wet-tropical setting supports a cautious cultivation inference: begin with a root zone that retains moisture during warm growth but drains freely, and do not treat the vine as a dryland plant. This is a habitat-based starting point rather than a species-tested irrigation recipe.[1][2]
Sun and humidity[edit | edit source]
A forest liane from the wet tropical biome is best approached with bright filtered light or gentle morning sun, good airflow, and consistently humid conditions. The light recommendation is an inference from its recorded forest habitat, so strong all-day exposure should be treated as a cultivation trial rather than a fixed species requirement.[1][2]
Seasonal changes[edit | edit source]
Keep the vine warm and evenly supplied with moisture during active growth, and avoid imposing a cool, dry rest copied from unrelated climbers. A fixed flowering or fruiting calendar should not be assumed for this species; adjust care to observed growth rather than a rigid schedule.[1]
Propagation[edit | edit source]
Seed is the propagation method identified in the available horticultural account.[3] Germination conditions should be treated as a trial rather than a fixed recipe, because a species-specific germination procedure is not established by that account.
Flowering, fruiting, and harvest[edit | edit source]
The ripe fruit is described as edible.[2] The examined horticultural summary gives an upper size of about 10 cm wide and 12.5 cm long; those figures are a reported maximum, not a promise that every vine will produce fruit of that size.[3] No fixed flowering, pollination, or bearing schedule should be assigned without a species-specific growing record.
Fruit and uses[edit | edit source]
The documented human use is the ripe fruit as food.[2] Flavor, texture, seediness, storage life, and preparation methods should not be inferred from the fruit's size or reported edibility. The historical latex description is not a toxicology or food-safety assessment; ripe fruit use should not be treated as proof that other plant parts are safe.