The

legume Legumes are plants in the pea family Fabaceae (or Leguminosae), or the fruit or seeds of such plants. When used as a dry grain for human consumption, the seeds are also called pulses. Legumes are grown agriculturally, primarily for human consum ...

''Sesbania bispinosa'', also known as ''Sesbania aculeata'' ( Willd.) Pers., is a small tree in the genus ''

Sesbania ''Sesbania'' is a genus of flowering plants in the pea family, Fabaceae, and the only genus found in tribe Sesbanieae. Riverhemp is a common name for plants in this genus. Notable species include the rattlebox (''Sesbania punicea''), spiny sesba ...

''.

Names

The name Sesbania is taken from its Arabic name Siesaban "سيسبان". It is known by many common names, including danchi, dunchi, dhaincha, canicha, prickly sesban, jantar or spiny sesbania. In

Vietnam Vietnam, officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam (SRV), is a country at the eastern edge of mainland Southeast Asia, with an area of about and a population of over 100 million, making it the world's List of countries and depende ...

, it is called điên điển gai or điền thanh gai. In

Cambodia Cambodia, officially the Kingdom of Cambodia, is a country in Southeast Asia on the Mainland Southeast Asia, Indochinese Peninsula. It is bordered by Thailand to the northwest, Laos to the north, and Vietnam to the east, and has a coastline ...

, it is called ស្នោ (''Pka Snaô'').

Description

It is an annual shrub which can grow to seven metres in height but usually only reaches one to two metres. It sends out fibrous, pithy stems with long leaves and bears purple-spotted yellow flowers. It produces pods which contain light brown beans.

Distribution and habitat

It is native to Asia and

North Africa North Africa (sometimes Northern Africa) is a region encompassing the northern portion of the African continent. There is no singularly accepted scope for the region. However, it is sometimes defined as stretching from the Atlantic shores of t ...

, is most common in tropical Africa where it grows as a common

noxious weed A noxious weed, harmful weed or injurious weed is a weed that has been designated by an agricultural or other governing authority as a plant that is harmful to agricultural or horticultural crops, natural habitats or ecosystems, or humans or lives ...

, and has been introduced to the Americas. It can grow on saline soil. ''S. bispinosa'' is adapted to wet, heavy soil but apparently adapts easily to drought-prone or sandy regions. It is cultivated widely in

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

and it is grown in rice paddies in Vietnam for use as firewood.

Uses

The plant has a great number of uses, including as green manure, rice straw, wood and fodder. *It can be used like

industrial hemp Hemp, or industrial hemp, is a plant in the botanical class of ''Cannabis sativa'' cultivars grown specifically for industrial and consumable use. It can be used to make a wide range of products. Along with bamboo, hemp is among the fastest ...

for rope, fish nets, sackcloth and sailcloth. Its fibers are similar to those of

birch A birch is a thin-leaved deciduous hardwood tree of the genus ''Betula'' (), in the family Betulaceae, which also includes alders, hazels, and hornbeams. It is closely related to the beech- oak family Fagaceae. The genus ''Betula'' contains 3 ...

trees and show promise as a source of

paper Paper is a thin sheet material produced by mechanically or chemically processing cellulose fibres derived from wood, Textile, rags, poaceae, grasses, Feces#Other uses, herbivore dung, or other vegetable sources in water. Once the water is dra ...

fiber. *The foliage makes a good fodder for livestock and the beans can be fed to fowl. The plant has been also used as a

famine food A famine food or poverty food is any inexpensive or ready available food used to nourish people in times of hunger and starvation, whether caused by extreme poverty, such as during economic depression or war, or by natural disasters such as dro ...

by people. *

Natural gum Natural gums are polysaccharides of natural origin, capable of causing a large increase in a solution's viscosity, even at small concentrations. They are mostly gum (botany), botanical gums, found in the woody elements of plants or in seed coati ...

from the plant is useful as a thickening agent. *Like other legumes, it can be planted to improve the soil via

nitrogen fixation Nitrogen fixation is a chemical process by which molecular dinitrogen () is converted into ammonia (). It occurs both biologically and abiological nitrogen fixation, abiologically in chemical industry, chemical industries. Biological nitrogen ...

. *It makes a good firewood.

Culinary

The yellow flowers of ''S. aculeata'' are eaten as a vegetable in Southeast Asia. They are much smaller than the more popular white flowers of ''Sesbania grandiflora'', but similar in shape. Still, they are appreciated as food in Thai and

Vietnamese cuisine Vietnamese cuisine encompasses the foods and beverages originated from Vietnam. Meals feature a combination of five fundamental tastes (): sweet, salty, bitter, sour, and Piquant, spicy. The distinctive nature of each dish reflects one or more ...

. In the

Thai language Thai,In or Central Thai (historically Siamese;Although "Thai" and "Central Thai" have become more common, the older term, "Siamese", is still used by linguists, especially when it is being distinguished from other Tai languages (Diller 2008:6 ...

the flowers are called ดอกโสน ''(dok sanō)''. They are used in Thai cuisine both cooked and raw, they can also be used to make omelettes and sweets. Sweets - "ขนมดอกโสน" (kanom dok sanō)
/ref>

In culture

The flower is the provincial flower of

Phra Nakhon Si Ayutthaya Province Phra Nakhon Si Ayutthaya, or locally and simply Ayutthaya (historically Juthia or Judia), is one of the central provinces (''changwat'') of Thailand. Neighboring provinces are (from north clockwise) Ang Thong, Lopburi, Saraburi, Pathum Than ...

Thailand Thailand, officially the Kingdom of Thailand and historically known as Siam (the official name until 1939), is a country in Southeast Asia on the Mainland Southeast Asia, Indochinese Peninsula. With a population of almost 66 million, it spa ...

References

External links

USDA Plants Profile
*
JSTOR: Sesbania spp. in Two Agro-Forestry Systems in Vietnam
{{Taxonbar, from1=Q3480581, from2=Q105620071 Faboideae Fiber plants Inflorescence vegetables Trees of Thailand Flora of Vietnam