Discover Africa's plants, by every name.
Search local names, traditional uses and real phytochemical data for African plants, starting with Nigeria. Every claim is cited.
- curated plants
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- phytochemicals
- 58
- local languages
- 12
- research citations
- 128
Bitter leaf
Vernonia amygdalina
- YOEwuro
- IGOnugbu
- HAShuwaka
A small shrub with bitter-tasting leaves, widely grown across tropical Africa and one of the most-used vegetables and traditional remedies in Nigeria.
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Grandma's remedies, with receipts
Every use, compound and caution on PlantLens cites its source: NMPPDB (Nigeria's own medicinal plant database), Dr. Duke's USDA databases, or a peer-reviewed study. Local names are checked against NMPPDB for Nigerian languages and against published references for the rest.
“Bitter leaf is widely used in Nigeria for managing type 2 diabetes.”
Associated with lowered blood glucose in animal studies. Ijeh & Ejike (2011), via NMPPDB.
Find a plant by the name you grew up with.
Ewuro, onugbu or mlonge? Type a name in Yoruba, Igbo, Hausa, Swahili or another local language, the English name or the botanical one. PlantLens finds the plant either way.
Uziza
A perennial climbing vine native to West African rainforests, closely related to true black pepper.
Roselle (Zobo)
An upright herb grown across the tropics for its fleshy red calyces, which are dried and brewed into the tart, deep-red drink known as zobo in Nigeria (hibiscus tea or bissap elsewhere).
Lemongrass
A tall, tufted perennial grass with a strong lemon scent, native to South and Southeast Asia and now widely grown in Nigeria.
Turmeric
A perennial rhizomatous herb, originally from southwestern India and now grown across the tropics including West Africa.
Pawpaw
A fast-growing tropical fruit tree that originated in Central America and is now grown across Africa and Asia.
Guava
An evergreen shrub or small tree originating from Central and South America and now naturalized across Africa.
Mango
A large evergreen tree, native to South and Southeast Asia and one of the world's most widely grown tropical fruits, with Nigeria among the top producing countries.
Soursop
A small evergreen tree native to the tropical Americas, now grown across Nigeria and other tropical regions for its large spiny fruit.
NMPPDB
Nigerian Medicinal Plants and Phytochemicals Database. Local names and Nigeria-specific findings.
nmppdb.com.ng ↗Dr. Duke's DB
USDA Phytochemical and Ethnobotanical Databases: compounds and recorded uses worldwide.
phytochem.nal.usda.gov ↗Literature
Peer-reviewed studies fill gaps where a plant has no database entry. Photos from Wikimedia Commons and iNaturalist.