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- 2020| Society for Indonesi...Mncwango NC, Mavengahama S, Ntuli NR, van Jaarsveld CM. 2020. Diversity, consumption dynamics and ethnomedical claims of traditional leafy vegetables consumed by a rural community in the KwaMbonambi area, northern KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. Biodiversitas 21: 1201-1207. Traditional leafy vegetables (TLVs) are mostly wild and informally-domesticated edible plant species. Their nutritious leaves, shoot tips, flowers and fruits are consumed as vegetables, particularly by rural communities in Africa. However, their consumption and cultivation are still marginal. This study aimed to identify the most preferred TLVs, as well as factors that affect the consumption and cultivation of these species. A questionnaire was administered among 100 respondents to record the preferred TLVs; the reason (s) for preference; consumption frequency; and constraints towards consumption of these vegetable species. This study recorded a total of 18 TLVs that belong to 14 genera and 11 families. Among these, Amaranthus hybridus, A. spinosus, A. thunbergii, Bidens biternata and Corchorus olitorius were the most preferred species. Vegetables were preferred primarily based on the taste; where most people ate them once a week when they are available. The major TLV consumption constraints were seasonal availability and low shelf life. A decline in the availability of TLVs was primarily caused by drought. Regardless of the observed decline, only 23% of respondents practiced informal cultivation of Amaranthus species. Bidens pilosa, Momordica balsamina, and Corchorus olitorius vegetable species were also known to possess some medicinal values. Future research on improving taste, increasing edible plant parts and elongating shelf life for preferred TLVs, is a necessity.
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- 2019| Gaurav PublicationsCorchorus olitorius is an underutilized, but nutrient-rich leafy vegetable. However, the nutritive value and micronutrient bioavailability of this vegetable has not been well researched in South Africa. Therefore, this study aimed at using a novel breeding technique, that is, utilization of colchicine treatment on mineral content of C. olitorius leaves. C. olitorius seeds were treated with 0, 0.025, 0.05, 0.075 and 0.1 g/l of colchicine for 2, 4, 6, 8 and 10 h. Treated seeds were sown in pots and laid out in a completely randomized design with three replications. Tender leaves were harvested at 49 days after planting for mineral content analysis using atomic absorption spectrophotometry. Data were subjected to ANOVA, principal component analysis and cluster analysis. Treatment with 0.025 g/l of colchicine for 2 h resulted in the highest nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium, calcium, magnesium, aluminium and iron content in C. olitorius leaves. Other studied leaf minerals decreased with an increase in colchicine concentration and prolonged treatment duration. All minerals were correlated positively with each other, but sodium, manganese and copper had an exclusive association with one another. Again, all minerals were positively associated with first principal component, while Na, Mn and Cu were associated with the second principal component. Biplot and dendrogram grouped treatments mainly according to treatment duration. The study also demonstrated high levels of variation among the colchicine treatments in the nutritional traits evaluated. This implies that colchicine has the potential to induce genetic variability which can be used for future C. olitorius crop improvement.
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