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Proboscidea fragrans - (Lindl.)Decne.

Sweet Unicorn Plant

Author	(Lindl.)Decne.	Botanical references	200
Family	Martyniaceae	Genus	Proboscidea
Synonyms	Martynia fragrans - Lindl. Proboscidea louisianica fragrans - (Lindl.)Bretting.
Known Hazards	None known
Range	South-western N. America - Texas to Mexico.
Habitat	Not known
Edibility Rating	2 (1-5)	Medicinal Rating	0 (1-5)

Physical Characteristics

Annual growing to 0.6m by 0.3m.

The plant prefers light (sandy), medium (loamy) and heavy (clay) soils and requires well-drained soil. The plant prefers acid, neutral and basic (alkaline) soils. It cannot grow in the shade. It requires moist soil.

Habitats

Cultivated Beds;

Edible Uses

Edible Parts: Leaves; Seed; Seedpod.

Leaves - cooked as a potherb with beans[183]. The half-ripe seedpods are cooked and eaten as a vegetable[2, 183]. They are 8 - 10cm long[188]. Seed - cooked[257]. Boiled and eaten[257]. The soft immature seeds can be eaten raw, roasted or ground into a paste[183].

Medicinal Uses

Plants For A Future can not take any responsibility for any adverse effects from the use of plants. Always seek advice from a professional before using a plant medicinally.

None known

Other Uses

Basketry.

The ripe seedpods are used as an ornament on willow baskets[2]. The pods are softened with lye and water, split, bent and used as sewing withes in coiled basketry[257].

Cultivation details

Requires a well-drained porous fertile soil in a warm sheltered position[188, 200]. A frost-tender species, it can be grown outdoors in Britain as a half-hardy annual. This species is closely related to P. louisianica[200].

Propagation

Seed - sow spring in a warm greenhouse. When they are large enough to handle, prick the seedlings out into individual pots and plant them out after the last expected frosts[200].

Links

References

[2] Hedrick. U. P. Sturtevant's Edible Plants of the World. Dover Publications 1972 ISBN 0-486-20459-6
Lots of entries, quite a lot of information in most entries and references.

[183] Facciola. S. Cornucopia - A Source Book of Edible Plants. Kampong Publications 1990 ISBN 0-9628087-0-9
Excellent. Contains a very wide range of conventional and unconventional food plants (including tropical) and where they can be obtained (mainly N. American nurseries but also research institutes and a lot of other nurseries from around the world.

[188] Brickell. C. The RHS Gardener's Encyclopedia of Plants and Flowers Dorling Kindersley Publishers Ltd. 1990 ISBN 0-86318-386-7
Excellent range of photographs, some cultivation details but very little information on plant uses.

[200] Huxley. A. The New RHS Dictionary of Gardening. 1992. MacMillan Press 1992 ISBN 0-333-47494-5
Excellent and very comprehensive, though it contains a number of silly mistakes. Readable yet also very detailed.

[257] Moerman. D. Native American Ethnobotany Timber Press. Oregon. 1998 ISBN 0-88192-453-9
Very comprehensive but terse guide to the native uses of plants. Excellent bibliography, fully referenced to each plant, giving a pathway to further information. Not for the casual reader.

Readers Comments

Plants for a Future does not verify the accuracy of reader comments, use at your own risk. In particular Plants For A Future can not take any responsibility for any adverse effects from the use of plants. You should always consult a professional before using plants medicinally.

Proboscidea fragrans

judi fullington Mon Apr 11 22:41:42 2005

i would like to plant the unicorn plant. where can i find the seed or seedlings to buy.

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