Scientific Name :Rumex abyssinicus JACQ. Vernacular Name :Umufumba Family name :Polygonaceae Geographic Distribution :fallow field, frequented area 1400-2000 m.
Botanical Description Shrub of 2m tall; stem little branched; leaves are spear shaped or hastate with auricle at the base of the leaf blade. Inflorescence in terminal panicles strongly ramified. Rose to purple Flowers arranged in glomerules.
Medicinal Use The soft stems and leaves are pounded together and the expressed sap used as treatment for pneumonia. The leaves are used as a cough cure. The roots are pounded and applied to wounds or mixed with water and the infusion drunk as a remedy for stomach-ache. In Rwanda, the leaves are used in traditional medicine to treat gomorrhoea and hepatitis, the roots to treat costiveness.
Other Use The tender shoots and leaves of Rumex abyssinicus are edible and widely used as a vegetable.
