I first read about Ceropegia bulbosa over 30 years ago and have finally got to eat the tuber. Of course, I could have visited India and found it there but I am too fussy for travelling long distances. The tuber becomes bitter soon after harvest and, as far as I know, it is not generally exported as a vegetable. So, I grew it from seed.
I sowed the seed on 26th of May 2021. Just one germinated on the 3rd of June. The seed was seven years old. I had sown half of the packet when I got it but none germinated. I put it in a drawer, thinking I should look up some growing tips. I found it again when cleaning out the drawer. I just chucked them on some pumice and watered them. Put them in a plastic bag in a bright, warm plant cabinet and checked them every day. The seed was described by the seller as from India (probably cultivated in California) but there was no more precise information than that.
The plant should not be allowed to get cold. I grew it in a cabinet with lighting on 16 hours per day, though not too intense. There was no active heating apart from the lights but the cabinet is in my bedroom, has a layer of dry gravel at the bottom to act as a heat sink and is partially insulated with a duvet. It never went below 17°C and occasionally reached 37°C during hot weather.
I did not let it dry out and watered with a very dilute fertiliser every time.
I showed a picture of this plant in my blog on the origin of the name Ceropegia, when it was 6 weeks old on 16th July 2021. The fully mature leaves are 4.5 cm x 2.5 cm. At that time it was in a 9cm (3½ inch) square pot:
When repotting at 7 weeks I took a quick snap of the tuber. I didn't want to pause too long to adjust the lighting or the camera while repotting the plant. The tuber was about 2 cm across. It was potted up directly into an 20cm (8 inch) pot from the 9cm pot shown above. It is not usually a good idea to pot up into a much bigger pot but the plant is a robust grower and it is potted in pure pumice and nothing else. Pumice makes for a very forgiving potting medium because it is inert, well-drained and has lots of airy spaces between the lumps.
When the first tiny buds appeared, I noticed they were drying out from the tip before developing. Knowing that they flower during the monsoon season in India, I upped the humidity. The relative humidity had been 30-50%. I added a standard small seed tray lid (cheap, without holes) added half a litre of water and dissolved 50g of sea salt in it. I then added some washed Hydroleca clay pebbles to over 3 cm depth. These float though they are porous and stay wet. The cabinet is about half of a cubic metre in volume. This brought the humidity up to 60-80%. I noticed that a flower bud was developing normally the next day. So, they could have flowered a few days earlier.
On the 31st of July 2021, the plant opened its first flower. The flowers are 2.2 cm (⅞ inch) tall.
By 4 hours later into the "day" the trumpet had flared more and the lantern windows widened. Continuing the candlestick/candelabrum theme of the genus, the trumpet could be called a bobeche, bowl, nose, nozzle or socket. Bobeche would be the most precise analogy but the least likely to be understood.
By the 13th of September 2021 the plant was producing abundant flowers. It was constantly covered in little bouquets and has been ever since. It didn't put much more bulk on as a plant, seeming to put most of its energy into producing flowers. I was a bit worried that it was not investing enough of its energy into the tuber. You can also see in this photo that the leaves are a different shape from those it produced before it started flowering.
I took several cuttings that are growing very nicely. I decided it was time to harvest the original plant when it was almost a year old, about 360 days. It was still in the 20cm (8 inch) square pot.
When the branches were trimmed down, it was clear that there was still only one stem coming up from the tuber. Here you can see the pumice clearly, medium chunks from Kaizen Bonsai. You can also see a scattering of dead flowers. I had blown the majority of dry flowers off the surface.
This photo shows the size of the tuber compared to the pot that it grew in. It was not growing quite as deep as this. When I emptied the pot there were some roots filling the very bottom of the pot and some trailing out of the drainage holes. The roots had taken advantage of every part of the pumice, without getting rootbound at all.
The tiny tuber to the far left of this photo is the only subsidiary tuber I found in the pot. The slightly green part on the left of the main tuber was higher than the rest and close to the surface of the pumice, though still buried.
This photo would have been more interesting if I had noticed how wet it still was and dried it a bit. I think those little green bits are dormant buds ready to take over if the main stem is removed by herbivores or gardeners.
This is the view of the bottom of the tuber. Width 6½ cm to 7 cm.
Side view. Deepest part 7cm, mostly 3cm height.
Cleaned of all the roots, the tuber weighed 82g. If you filled a metre squared with 20 cm pots, you could get 2 kg per square metre.
The raw tuber was juicy but quite chewy, though not fibrous in any way at all. Slight sweetness and a hint of Jerusalem artichoke.
Cut into rough 1 cm cubes and boiled, they were ready to eat after 5 minutes boiling but perfectly cooked after ten minutes. The texture was like a new potato but denser and more starchy with a texture like other very starchy tuberous tropical vegetables, like suran and some yams. They were just white cubes. Slightly translucent with a slight resemblance to the jelly of cornstarch-based Turkish delight. I should have taken photos but I was too busy eating. I can see why it is used to make sweets in India. The flavour was very mild, a little sweet and a hint of Jerusalem artichoke like the raw tuber. A little bitter where the skin was green but not much.
I did not notice any medicinal effect, though my hayfever may have been reduced a little.
Overall, absolutely delicious cooked, I would recommend it - if you are in a warm country and could grow it without the amount of electricity I used.
The leaves are also edible, succulent, crisp and easy to eat. When the lights first come on, the leaves are acidic and quite delightfully tangy. As the artificial day progresses, the acid is used up and the leaves taste more bland.
Like many other plants adapted to seasonal, or year-round, drought, Ceropegia bulbosa has Crassulacean Acid Metabolism (CAM). They take in carbon dioxide during the night through open stomata on the leaves. In the leaves it is fixed into malic acid. This can then be used for photosynthesis when the sun is shining. The plant would lose more water if it had open stomata during the day so it breathes at night. Another member of the same family that has CAM is Frerea indica and I have gone into more detail in that blog article.
At least 60 species of Ceropegia have been reported as eaten by people, across most of the whole distribution of the genus - all of Africa below the Sahara, Madagascar, Arabia, South Asia, China, South-east Asia and Australia. The two species found on the Canary Islands are not eaten and one has a definite reputation as a poison.
Here is what I have found so far for Ceropegia bulbosa for my slowly developing book - Notes on the Useful Asclepiads. I am afraid that I am not going to put the references in here, that would be a lot of work. You will just have to trust me for now that all of these facts come from real books and journals. Though the references with actual numbers can be found in my 2011 article Notes On Some Edible, Medicinal And Magical Xerophytic, Tuberous Or Succulent Asclepiads And A Firework.
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Ceropegia bulbosa Roxb.
India, Rajasthan: "Kadula" [112], "Kaduloo" [113], "Kewda Ki Nal". [222] "Patalatumbi" [235].
India, Gujarat: "Jeemi Kanda". [34]
India, Gujarat, Vasava tribe: "Sap Okoni". [zzzwy]
India, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh: "bosiya kandha". [125]
India, Madhya Pradesh, Dhar District tribes: "Khatumbra". [zzziq]
Bombay Presidency, Khandesh district, Shahada: "Dúdha malida kand" ('milk and sweetmeat'). [76]
Bombay Presidency, Nasik district, Chandor: "Malode". [76]
Western Rajasthan: "Hedulo", "Khapparkadu". [76]
India, border of Ahmednagar and Nashik districts, Marathi: "Kharpudi". [zzznt]
Hindi: "Khapparkadu". [83]
Maharashtra, Alibag, Kulaba Fort: "Khaparkundi". [zzzpi]
Marathi: "Khapparkadu", "Patali Kumbari". [83]
Kannad: "Halliki". [83]
Punjabi: "Galat". [83]
Telegu: "Palatige". [83]
Telugu: "Commoo-manda" (as Ceropegia acuminata), "Batsala-mandu" (as Ceropegia bulbosa) and "Manchy Mandu" (as Ceropegia tuberosa).[zzzbz]
Telugu: "Manchi (= good) Mandu" (as Ceropegia bulbosa), "Commoo-madu" (as Ceropegia acuminata). [zzzcc]
Pakistan, Multan, "Ghalot". [zzzti]
Pakistan: "Glote". [8]
Yemen, central Abyan governate, Lawdar & Modyah districts: "Alat-Khalah". [zzznu]
Southern Yemen: "Alat-khalah", "Roob". [zzzpv]
Ethiopia: "Menehoukoua", "Engoulita", "Mechuko". [zzzwf]
Northern Ethiopia, Eastern Zone of Tigray, Ganta Afeshum District: "Mshko". [zzzpd]
Africa, Lake Victoria region, Luo: "Ong'eni". [zzzii]
Pakistan, Multan, in 1862, tubers and acid leaves eaten. [zzzti] Pakistan, Salt Range, tubers cooked in milk and sugar to prepare a highly nutritious sweet. Tubers as aphrodisiac, tonic and vs. seminal debility, leucorrhoea and some digestive complaints in children. [8]
Tuber tonic, aphrodisiac and edible. [125] Tuber eaten raw to increase fertility and vitality in both sexes. [112, 113] Refrigerant (adapts the body to excessive heat). [34] Tubers eaten raw vs. stomachache. Dried tuber rubbed on stone to apply to scorpion sting. [235] Usually boiled before eating to remove the bitterness due to the alkaloid ceropegine. [176]
India, Madhya Pradesh, Dhar District tribes, leaves and tubers boiled as a vegetable. [zzziq] India, Maharashtra, tubers eaten raw or cooked, should be consumed immediately on harvest or they develop a bitter taste within hours. Leaves as sour vegetable. [zzzfc] Maharashtra, Alibag, Kulaba Fort, local people eat raw tubers and leaves for the sweet and sour taste. Tubers vs. digestive problems. [zzzpi] India, Western Ghats, tuber vs. cold, eye-disease, diarrhoea, dysentery, inflammation of gums, delirious childbirth fever and sneezing. [zzzcx] Gujarat, Ratan Mahal Hills tribes tuber as refrigerant. Maharashtra tribes, tuber for vitality. Rajasthan, Maharashtra and Goa tribes eat the tubers and leaves as vegetables. Ceropegine is the bitter principle. [83] India, Gujarat, Vasava tribe, tubers edible, boiled and seasoned with crushed chili flakes. [zzzwy] Tuber vs. diarrhoea, dysentery. [129] Rajasthan, tuber eaten cooked or raw. Tuber, decoction orally vs. urinary bladder stones. Seed paste inside ear vs. deafness. [222] India, Bombay Presidency: tubers and leaves eaten uncooked. Also eaten boiled and mixed with either milk and sugar or with salt and spices. India, western Rajasthan, tubers and leaves eaten raw or boiled. [76] India, aerial parts eaten raw or dressed.[zzzbd] In 1795, Roxburgh, describing the Coromandel Coast of India, had three species all now regarded as varieties of Ceropegia bulbosa: C. acuminata, C. bulbosa and C. tuberosa. All parts of these plants were eaten raw or stewed in curries. Fresh roots tasted like a raw turnip, stem tasted of purslane. C. tuberosa was said to have a smaller but more palatable tuber.[zzzbz, zzzcc] Tubers "bitter, somewhat like raw turnips." [14]
Southern Yemen, young stem eaten fresh in rainy season, mild and sweet. Seldom found. [zzzpv] Yemen, central Abyan governate, fresh raw parts of stem eaten vs. low immunity. [zzznu] [I have a slight suspicion these two are a clerical error, there are lots of edible stapeliads in that area that only consist of succulent stems.] Arabian Peninsula, tuber eaten, as snack food by herders. [79]
Root tubers edible, reported as Ceropegia vignaldiana A. Rich. [154] The species Ceropegia vignaldiana was used for many African specimens but is now regarded as Ceropegia bulbosa. This has extended the range of Ceropegia bulbosa - from Cameroon and Chad in Western Africa, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Kenya and Somalia in the Horn of Africa, Oman, Saudi Arabia and Yemen in Asia Minor and India and Pakistan in Asia Major. [zzzrh] Ethiopia, The collector noted: "... the tubers are eaten. Raw, their flavour is bitter and a little sugary. When cooked, their flavour is very reminiscent of Jerusalem artichokes." In the original French: "... qu'on en mange les tubercules. Crus, leur saveur est amère et un peu sucrée. Quand ils sont cuits, leur saveur rappelle tout à fait celle des topinambours." [zzzwf]
Africa, Lake Victoria region, Luo, tubers edible raw. Common in the Onjiko area. Reported as Ceropegia brosima. [zzzii]
Northern Ethiopia, Eastern Zone of Tigray, Ganta Afeshum District, fresh whole plant is crushed and fed to livestck vs. abdominal pain. [zzzpd]
India, Maharashtra, border of Ahmednagar and Nashik districts, rhizome used to poison cats. [zzznt] [This seems totally out of character compared to all the other uses. I feel there is more to this story.]
Ceropegia bulbosa var. bulbosa Roxb.
India, Western Ghats: "Kharpudi". [zzzcx]
India, Maharashtra, Satara and Kolhapur district: "Kharpudi". [zzznc]
Maharashtra: "Galya", "Kharpudi", "Khartundi", "Khapparkadu". [zzzpk]
India, Western Ghats, leaves and tuber edible. Easy to grow in gardens. [zzzcx] Maharashtra, tuber edible. The leaves are succulent and sour in taste in morning. [zzzpk] Northern Western Ghats, tubers edible. [zzzsa]
India, Maharashtra, Satara and Kolhapur district, raw tubers to enhance ladies' fertility and vitality. Approximately 78% moisture, 4½% protein, 7% carbohydrate and 9% fibre. Decoction used vs. bladder stones. Paste applied vs. inflammation of skin. [zzznc]
Ceropegia bulbosa var. lushii (R.A.Graham) Hook.f
India, Western Ghats: "Kharpudi". [zzzcx]
Maharashtra: "Khapparkadu". [zzzpk]
India, Western Ghats, leaves and tuber edible. Easy to grow in gardens. [zzzcx] India, Northern Western Ghats, leaves and tuber edible and used in traditional medicine. [zzzsa]
