Uncaria acida (Hunt.) Roxb.

Family

Rubiaceae

Synonyms

Nauclea acida Hunt., Uncaria ovalifolia Roxb., Uncaria acida var. papuana Valeton.

Vernacular Names

Geographical Distributions

Uncaria acida is distributed from Burma (Myanmar) to Thailand, southern Vietnam, Peninsular Malaysia, Sumatra, Java, Lesser Sunda Islands, Borneo, the Philippines and New Guinea.

Description

U. acida is a rather slender climber measuring 4-6 m tall. The hooks measure 2-3 cm long.

The leaves are egg-shaped to elliptical and measure 5-9 cm x 2.5-5 cm. They are papery to partial covered by a leathery texture, hairless, ultimate fine veins, frequently domatia underneath, stomata present on upper surface, stalk measures 10-12 mm long and the 4-7 mm long stipules are deeply bifid.

The flowering head is measuring up to 2 cm in diametre and over 5 cm in fruit. The peduncle measures 1.5-2 cm long. The flowers are subsessile and white. Its sepal tube measures 2 mm long and lobe elliptical to partially flat with circular outline. It measures 1 mm long. Its petal tube measures 5 mm long and hairy outside. The, lobes measure 1.5 mm long and hairy at both sides. The 13 mm x 2-2.5 mm capsule is oblong and pointed at both ends. It is sparsely hairy. The pedicel measures 5-6 mm long and slender. The seed measures 5 mm x 0.5 mm, long wings, white, slender and long acuminate.

Ecology / Cultivation

U. acida is locally abundant in humid primary and secondary forest, also along rivers, on swampy localities at low altitudes.

Line Drawing / Photograph

References

1. Plant Resources of South-East Asia No 12(2): Medicinal and poisonous plants 2.