Family: Cleomaceae
Common name: Spindle pod, African spider flower, Spiderplant, Bastard mustard, Single-leaved cleome, Spider flower, Mujakari, Cheruvela, Kattukadugu, Ellukku sakkalathi
Spindle pod is a small weed plant found very commonly in India, especially in the South Indian states of Kerala and Karnataka. They are native to Africa but they can grow well in most tropical countries on roadsides, agricultural lands, open plots, backyards, and so on.
Plant characteristics
Spindle pods only grow to a height of about 50 cm with an erect posture and slender, cylindrical, green stems that is covered with fine white hairs. The stem has light vertical striations giving it the strength to stay upright with a few branches.
Leaves are simple and alternate, making this plant different from Cleome rutidosperma or Fringed spider flower which has trifoliolate leaves with three distinct leaflets. This particular characteristic gives the plants its name ‘monophylla’.
Spindle pod leaves are green, about 3-6 cm long, lance-shaped and completed covered with thin, white hairs on both surfaces as well as along the margins.
Flowers are borne in clusters at the tip of the stem or at the leaf axils, the angle formed between the leaves and the stem. They are about 1-1.5 cm in diameter, asymmetrical with delicate pink petals.
Spindle pod flower petals stay upright whereas the stamens and style project downwards, giving the flower a distinct appearance. This gives the flower a spider-like appearance and its name ‘Spider flower’.
Once the flowers are pollinated by ants, bees, or small insects, they produce the most distinct feature of the Spindle pod, the elongated, spindle-like, seed pods that contain tiny seeds.
The seed pods are slender, green, about 5-8 cm long containing more than 20-25 seeds that are tightly packed. Once the seed pods mature, they turn brown and then split open vertically, releasing the seeds.
The seeds are moved to new locations by small animals and birds that eat them, or through water propagation, where they germinate easily.
Gardening tips and uses
Spindle pod plants are easy to grow and propagate. They are tolerant of drought and water logging, and need very little care. These sturdy little plants can grow in a range of soil types, thriving in humid, hot weather conditions.
Like most weed plants, this one also has many medicinal uses in traditional herbal medicine, in the treatment of headache, wounds, cuts, ulcers, boils, cough, eye diseases, respiratory ailments, sores, inflammation, ear discharges, and fever.
Propagation
Propagation is through seeds which root well in well-drained soil. Parent plants can self-seed, producing smaller plants are the base, which can then be removed gently without breaking the roots, and replanted.
Photographed at: Koonammavu, Kerala
