African Plants, Thistles & Nettles

The Curative Plants of Africa

• The Eastern Cape supports over 100 species of Aloe, valued for its soothing effect on irritated skin. Many people believe aloe has other healing properties as well. Folk medicine is common in Africa. According to the Department of Botany and Zoology at Stellenbeck University in South Africa, 70 percent of the population uses native plants for medicinal purposes. Among the plants used is the lavender star plant, an attractive flowering shrub with shiny leaves and gracefully arching limbs. African wormwood, a bushy, untidy plant in the daisy family, is used for poultices and as an infusion for relief of pain. Wild gourd has been used since biblical times as a purgative.

The Bull Thistle

• The thistle serves as a food source for herbivores such as the African mountain gorilla at altitudes of 10,000 feet or more. It can also be cooked for human consumption and eaten as greens, if gathered when plants are young. The sharp spines of older plants prevent easy harvest. Thistles grow in a wide range of environments but are most common where soils are moderately soft. The bull thistle, native to North Africa, was brought to the United States in colonial days. According to the U.S. Forest Service, it is now the most common thistle in North American range land, where it has become an invasive crop. It thrives in open areas, where it forms thickets that hamper the regrowth of over-grazed pasture land, or burn areas.

Nettles and Other Edible Plants

• Nettles, too, are food for the herbivores of Africa, They are palatable and nourishing, but prickly to pick. The underside of the leaves is covered with tiny hairs and fibers that, if touched, cause an irritation much like that from the sting of an insect. Nettles can be cultivated and grow quickly. If harvested young, they are a tasty source of greens for the table. Other edible African plants include the acacia, whose young leaves, flowers and pods are all edible; the oil palm, with its walnut-size fruit; African blue basil; black pepper; cardamom and other native spices; and tamarind, used for centuries as a seasoning for rice and other staple dishes. The tamarind's pods, seeds, flowers and bark are all put to use, for food, medicine or in various other ways. According to a Purdue University study, some indigenous food plants of Africa have developed as an agricultural industry with export potential.

The Exotic and the Absurd

• The plant kingdom of Africa is extensive, ranging from quite ordinary to the exotic, even the seemingly absurd: succulents that look like stones; trees that appear to be planted upside down. This, with flowers of dazzling size and intense color, evokes a feeling of extremes, as though all plant-life in Africa is exaggerated. The baobab tree alone is representative of this. Its massive, bottle-shaped trunk stores thousands of gallons of drinkable water that can be tapped for survival by animals and travelers in a thirsty land. Its stubby, out-of-proportion branches give cause to wonder, but it is called "the tree of life" by the people of Senegal, where it is a national symbol. It is also an edible plant; both pulp and roots can be eaten. According to a Tarangire National Park report, the Baobab tree may be the oldest life form on the African continent.