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Malabar Spinach
Basella alba
γγ«γ γ©γ΅γ
A climbing annual herb native to Southeast Asia, cultivated as a vegetable in Japan. Heat-tolerant in summer, its succulent leaves are used in stir-fries and blanched dishes. Small pale pink to white flowers are borne in spicate inflorescences, and fruits ripen to dark purple.
Identification Points
- βStems are fleshy, green or purple, climbing and twining
- βLeaves are succulent and smooth with a spinach-like flavor
- βFruits are fleshy, dark purple, containing betacyanin pigments
Habitat
Cultivated (fields and home gardens); occasionally escaped to roadsides
Season
JulyβOctober (flowers and fruit)
Morphological TraitsAI-estimated, needs verification
Growth form
Vine
Flowering season
Summer
Habitat
Cultivated
Leaf type
Simple
Petal fusion
Fused
Stipules
Absent
Leaf dissection
Undivided
Flower symmetry
Actinomorphic
Ovary position
Superior
Phylogenetic Positionγγ«γ γ©γ΅γη§ β
Phylogenetic Position
Angiosperms > Eudicots > Core Eudicots > Caryophyllales > Basellaceae
Divergence Era
Paleogene (ca. 45 million years ago)
Evolution Notes
Basellaceae belongs to the betalain-producing lineage within Caryophyllales (containing betalains rather than anthocyanins). The succulent leaves and stems evolved as an adaptation to drought.
View on evolution timeline βSources & References
AI-generated, needs verification