Rusty-leaf Muuna Vine Flower 野生血藤花

• Tweet
• 

• Tweet
• 

 

My wife called me over to have a look at this flower, a 野生血藤花. This vine, a Rusty-leaf Muuna or Large-fruit Mucuna (Mucuna macrocarpa Wall.) grows liberally everywhere in Namasia, so much that it will strangle all our fruit trees if a constant vigil is not kept.

 

I had never seen them flower, nor had my wife! So I spent some time taking pictures of the interesting blooms.

 

The vines are very useful. When they are living they are malleable and as they dry, they harden into whatever shape is needed. The vines are also used as a Chinese medicinal herb.

 

We once spent a day playing Tarzan — swinging from these vines in the jungle near ErXi Mountain in Namasia. The vines are attached to the jungle canopy many meters in the air and in the right spots one can make very exciting swings.