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Sanseviera aethiopica

Common name:	Bowstring Hemp	Family:	Agavaceae
Author:	Thunb.	Botanical references:	200
Synonyms:	Sanseviera zeylanica (non Willd.)
Known Hazards:	None known
Range:	Tropical Africa.
Habitat:	Not known
Edibility Rating (1-5):	1	Medicinal Rating (1-5):	0

Other Possible Synonyms:	From various places across the web, may not be correct. See below.
	Aloe hyacinthoides var. zeylanica[G] Sansevieria aethiopica[G] Sansevieria pumila[G] Sansevieria scabrifolia[G] Sansevieria zeylanica[E,G]
Other Common Names:	From various places around the Web, may not be correct. See below.
	Murva [E],
Epithets:	From a Dictionary of Botanical Epithets
	aethiopica = African (esp So. African), ebony black
Systematics:	From a USDA Plants Database
	Order: Liliales. Century-plant family
Other Range Info:	From the Ethnobotany Database
	India

Physical Characteristics

An evergreen perennial growing to 0.6m. It is hardy to zone 10 and is frost tender. It is in leaf all year, in flower in July. The flowers are hermaphrodite (have both male and female organs). We rate it 1/5 for edibility and 0/5 for medicinal use.

The plant prefers light (sandy) and medium (loamy) soils and requires well-drained soil. The plant prefers acid, neutral and basic (alkaline) soils. It cannot grow in the shade. It requires dry or moist soil and can tolerate drought.

Habitats and Possible Locations

By Walls, By South Wall, By West Wall.

Edible Uses

Drink.

The rhizome is a source of water[177]. This is presumably of some use in the arid areas of its native range, but of rather limited benefit in Britain[K].

Medicinal Uses

Disclaimer

None known

Other Uses

Fibre.

A high quality fibre is obtained from the leaves. It is used for making sails and paper[1, 42, 46, 57].

Cultivation details

Requires a very sunny position in a very well-drained sandy gritty loam[42] and a pH between 6 and 7[200].
This species is not very frost hardy, though it can succeed outdoors in the mildest parts of the country if it is given a selected sunny position[42]. Plants must be kept dry after they have flowered[42].
There is a lot of confusion between this species, S. roxburghiana. Schult. from India and S. zeylanica. (L.)Willd. from Sri Lanka[200]. It is most likely that they all have similar uses, though none of them are likely to be very hardy in Britain.

Propagation

Seed - we have no information for this species but suggest sowing the seed in a warm greenhouse in April. Prick out the seedlings into individual pots when they are large enough to handle and grow them on for at least a couple of years in a greenhouse before trying any of them outdoors.
Division of suckers as growth commences in the spring.
Leaf-cuttings, 7cm long placed in sand in a frame[1]. The leaf is cut into sections, the cut surfaces allowed to dry for a few hours, and the sections then placed in pots in a warm light frame, but with shelter from direct sunlight. Rooting and new growth should take place within a month.

Suppliers

For more details of plant suppliers please see our Suppliers Page which lists many more places to look.

Web References

[HP] Links, Photos, Suppliers from Hortiplex Plant Database

References for Sansevieria aethiopica (a possible synonym).

[G] Data (Common Names, Uses, Distribution) from the USDA/ARS NPGS's GRIN taxonomic database.

References for Sansevieria zeylanica (a possible synonym).

[E] Ethnobotany Data (common names, uses, countries) from the Ethnobotany Database.
[G] Data (Common Names, Uses, Distribution) from the USDA/ARS NPGS's GRIN taxonomic database.

See the PFAF Links Pages for other sources.

Also try Photos and info from the The Plants Database which has 14,000 images.

References

[K] Ken Fern
Notes from observations, tasting etc at Plants For A Future and on field trips.

[1] F. Chittendon. RHS Dictionary of Plants plus Supplement. 1956 Oxford University Press 1951
Comprehensive listing of species and how to grow them. Somewhat outdated, it has been replaces in 1992 by a new dictionary (see [200]).

[42] Grey. C. H. Hardy Bulbs. Williams & Norgate. 1938
Rather dated now, but an immense work on bulbs for temperate zones and how to grow them. Three large volumes.

[46] Uphof. J. C. Th. Dictionary of Economic Plants. Weinheim 1959
An excellent and very comprehensive guide but it only gives very short descriptions of the uses without any details of how to utilize the plants. Not for the casual reader.

[57] Schery. R. W. Plants for Man.
Fairly readable but not very comprehensive. Deals with plants from around the world.

[177] Kunkel. G. Plants for Human Consumption. Koeltz Scientific Books 1984 ISBN 3874292169
An excellent book for the dedicated. A comprehensive listing of latin names with a brief list of edible parts.

[200] Huxley. A. The New RHS Dictionary of Gardening. 1992. MacMillan Press 1992 ISBN 0-333-47494-5
Excellent and very comprehensive, though it contains a number of silly mistakes. Readable yet also very detailed.

Readers Comments

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Plant information taken from the Plants For A Future - Species Database. Copyright (c) 1997-2003.
WEB search engine by Rich Morris - Home Page- Contact Info
Blagdon Cross, Ashwater, Beaworthy, Devon, EX21 5DF, UK.
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We make no claims of magical effects or supernatural powers for any item in this catalog. In spite of legendary attributes or occult and craft tradition, such items are offered as curios only and beliefs concerning their magical effectiveness are related only for historical interest.