Medicinal Herbs

Solanum procumbens Extract

Solanum procumbens

Solanum procumbens, known in Vietnam as cà gai leo, is a scrambling, climbing shrub with stems of 0.6 to 1 metre or more, thickly set with prickles, its wide branches furred with star-shaped hairs. Its ovate leaves, 3-4cm long, are pale and downy underneath and prickly; pale violet flowers with yellow anthers open in small cymes, and the round fruit ripens to a glossy yellow 5-7mm across. It grows wild across the northern provinces of Vietnam as far south as Huế, and in Laos and Cambodia. The root is dug at any season, washed, sliced thin and dried, then simmered in water.