Psoralea corylifolia seeds

LATIN NAME: Psoralea corylifolia

COMMON NAME: Babchi

The babchi is the small, grey herb of the dry fields, with a long and careful record. The low, upright, aromatic, annual or short-lived perennial carries the finely divided, gland-dotted leaves and the small, blue-purple, pea-like flowers in the dense clusters through the summer, to be followed by the small, flat, brown seeds. The seeds have a very long record in the old practice of the East, and the plant is a fine, quiet presence of the warm border and the herb garden. It is a plant of the open, sunny, well-drained ground.

Scientific Research & Plant Biotechnology

The babchi is an old, careful subject of the plant science, studied for the small, flat seeds and the chemistry of the plant. The compounds of the seeds, which have a very long record in the old practice of the East, have been studied at length, and it keeps showing up in the work on the medicinal seeds, the light-sensitive compounds and the members of the pea family. The finely divided leaves and the low, upright habit have also made it a fine garden plant, and the babchi is a regular subject of the studies of the old seed medicines of the warm world.

Ecological & Economic Value & Wide Applications

The babchi is a small, careful plant with a very long record in the old practice. The small, blue-purple, pea-like flowers open in the dense clusters through the summer, and the small, flat, brown seeds have a very long record in the old practice of the East, where they were kept and studied for the skin and the light. The seeds carry the light-sensitive compounds, so the plant is one for the garden and the study rather than the kitchen, and the seeds are best handled with care and kept out of the strong light. It has been written up in the botanical and the dermatological papers for the blue-purple flowers and the very long record of the seeds, and it is a fine, quiet plant of the open, sunny, well-drained garden.

The babchi is one of the old seed medicines of the East, and the small, flat, brown seeds carry the light-sensitive compounds of the old practice. The seeds are best kept out of the strong light, and the plant is one for the garden and the study rather than the kitchen.

To grow the babchi from seed, sow the small, flat seeds on the surface of a pot of loose, free-draining soil, pressing them in lightly, keep the pot in a warm, bright spot and water gently. The seedlings thread up within a couple of weeks and grow on steadily. With the sun, the warmth and the well-drained ground, the blue-purple clusters will open through the summer.

Psoralea corylifolia (Babchi) is an important plant in the Indian Ayurveda and Tamil Siddha systems of medicine, and also Chinese medicine. The seeds of this plant contain a variety of coumarins including psoralen. The seeds have a variety of medicinal uses, but the specific role (if any) of psoralen in these uses is unknown. Psoralen itself has a number of commercial uses.