Gynura procumbens – Longevity Spinach (plant)

Description

Gynura procumbens of the Asteraceae family, is a small plant ~1–3 m in height. Native to Asian countries including China, Thailand, Indonesia, Malaysia and Vietnam. The stems are fleshy and the leaves are ovate-elliptic or lanceolate. It has scientific synonym names such as Gynura sarmentosa and Cacalia sarmentosa. The plant leaf is commonly consumed and scientifically it has been shown to be safe for consumption.

In Malaysia, the fresh leaves of G. procumbens are commonly eaten raw and in Thailand, the leaves are also used for cooking. In Malay, G. procumbens is called Sambung Nyawa which means “prolongation of life” whereas in Chinese, it is called Bai Bing Cao which means “100 ailments”. This is because it has been utilized in traditional medicine both systemically and for topical application for treatment of different types of illnesses and diseases. For example, it is widely used to relieve kidney discomfort in Indonesia and people have been using it for the treatment of fever in Vietnam. In Thailand, it is commonly used to alleviate inflammation, rheumatism, and to cure viral ailments). The beneficial properties of G. procumbens have been attributed to the presence of bioactive compounds such as flavonoids and glycosides in this plant (Gynura procumbens: An Overview of the Biological Activities).

Gynura procumbens is commonly used for diabetes treatment in traditional medicine and its hypoglycemic effect has been reported in in vivo studies. One intriguing finding on G. procumbens, is its specificity in inducing hypoglycaemic effect only in diabetic animals as it has been shown to cause a significant decrease in fasting blood glucose levels and suppression of glucose elevation during glucose tolerance test in diabetic rats but not normal rats  (Gynura procumbens: An Overview of the Biological Activities).

Care and Cultivation of Gynura procumbens

Cuttings are supplied, which may or may not be rooted. They root easily and you simply need to place just under the surface of a well drained mix. Full sun to part shade, adequate moisute, fairly easy to grow. Treat as a groundcover or scrambling vine.

1-2 cuttings (100-150mm long)