Plantae > Tracheophyta > Magnoliopsida > Fabales > Fabaceae > Astragalus > Astragalus gummiferAstragalus gummifer (Gum Tragacanth)Synonyms: Astracantha adanica; Astracantha gummifera (homotypic); Astracantha rayatensis; Astracantha tournefortii; Astragalus adanicus; Astragalus adpressus (homotypic); Astragalus erianthus (heterotypic); Astragalus gummifer f. macrophyllus; Astragalus gummifer tournefortii; Astragalus gummifer var. villosus; Astragalus noemiae; Astragalus noemiae var. brantii; Astragalus rayatensis; Astragalus tournefortii; Tragacantha eriantha; Tragacantha gummifera (homotypic); Tragacantha tournefortii Astragalus gummifer (tragacanth, gum tragacanth milkvetch), is a small woody evergreen shrub, with a typical height and spread of 30 cm at maturity, indigenous to western Asia, specifically Iraq and Kurdistan. This nitrogen fixing plant bears hermaphroditic flowers, which are bee-pollinated. It has many medical, culinary, and material uses. |
| Edible [1] | May be edible. See the Plants For A Future link below for details. | | Flower Type [1] | Hermaphrodite | | Hazards [1] | Many members of this genus contain toxic glycosides; All species with edible seedpods can be distinguished by their fleshy round or oval seedpod that looks somewhat like a greengage; A number of species can also accumulate toxic levels of selenium when grown in soils that are relatively rich in that element; | | Leaf Type [1] | Evergreen | | Pollinators [1] | Bees, Lepidoptera | | Scent [1] | The stems, when burnt, yield a fragrant aroma. | | Structure [1] | Shrub | | Usage [1] | Gum tragacanth is obtained from the stem (see above). It has a wide range of uses including:- a thickening agent in preparing dyes for calico printing, textile dyes and for dressing fabrics, it is also a thickener in making glues, water colours, ink (where it supplies a gloss), it is a binding agent in paper making, a culture medium in laboratories etc;
Both the stems and the gum can be burnt as a fragrant incense; |  | | Height [1] | 12 inches (0.3 m) | | Width [1] | 12 inches (0.3 m) |
View Plants For A Future Record : Astragalus gummifer |
Species taxanomy provided by GBIF Secretariat (2022). GBIF Backbone Taxonomy. Checklist dataset https://doi.org/10.15468/39omei accessed via GBIF.org on 2023-06-13; License: CC BY 4.0
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