Phanera vahlii Seeds | Maloo Creeper
LATIN NAME: Phanera vahlii
COMMON NAME: Maloo Creeper
Plant Profile
Phanera vahlii is one of the largest climbers in Asia, and it can cover a tree or a hillside in a single season. The stems are thick, woody and covered in a rusty down, and they climb by tendrils that coil around anything within reach. The leaves are the largest of any Bauhinia relative, up to thirty centimetres across, two-lobed and leathery, and they are used in India as plates.
The species grows in the Himalayan foothills and in central India, from Uttarakhand to Andhra Pradesh, on dry slopes and in scrub. The flowers are in long, hanging sprays of white and yellow, and the pods are flat, brown and covered in hair. It is one of the plants that makes the sal forests of central India impassable in the monsoon.
Science & Biotechnology
The seed is edible after roasting, and the pod is covered in stinging hairs that irritate the skin, which is why the plant is handled with care. The stem yields a strong fibre, used for rope and for coarse cloth, and the leaves are used as leaf plates, pressed and stitched or simply folded, a use that goes back centuries in central India.
The genus has been split from Bauhinia on molecular grounds, and Phanera is now the accepted genus for this group of climbers. The plant is a legume and fixes nitrogen, and its vigour makes it useful for soil cover and a nuisance in plantations, where it smothers young trees.
Uses & Benefits
The leaves are made into donas and pattals, the leaf plates and cups used at festivals and in temples, and the trade is a livelihood for women in central India. The stem fibre is used for rope, for sacks and for coarse matting, and the seed is eaten roasted in times of scarcity.
In Ayurveda the bark and the root are used for snakebite and for skin complaints, and the gum is used as a tonic. The plant is also grown as an ornamental for the hanging flowers, though it needs a large tree or a strong pergola to carry it. The plates are also used in Maharashtra for drying fish and for packing produce.
Growing from Seed
Scarify the seed and sow it at 25 to 30 degrees in spring. Germination is in two to four weeks, and the seedling is vigorous. Cuttings of hardwood also root, which is the way to keep a selected form.
The plant needs full sun, a strong support and plenty of room. It is tender below about minus one, so it is a climber for a warm climate, and it grows fast enough to cover a pergola in two seasons. Cut it back hard in winter to keep it within bounds, since it will otherwise run over the roof of a house.
Our Take
A colossal climber with leaves that become plates and stems that become rope, and too much plant for a small garden.
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