Composition of edible wild greens

Abstract

Eleven edible wild greens of West Bengal (Enhydra fluctuans, Hydrocotyle asiatica, Herpestis monneira, Oxalis corniculata, Mollugo spergula, Mollugo hirta, Cephalandra indica, Hygrophila spinosa, Amaranthus spinosus, Rumex vesicarius and Trianthema monogyna) were analysed for moisture, protein, fat, carbohydrate, ash, crude fibre, calcium, phosphorus, iron, nicotinic acid, ascorbic acid and calories. The nutritive value of the leaves of these species was generally low.

Chemical composition of hummayd (Rumex vesicarius) grown in Saudi Arabia

“…The moisture content is comparable to that of R. vesicarius (86.3%), reported by Sengupta and Pal (1970). However, the moisture content of the hummayd leaves is much higher than that of Nigerian sorrel leaf (76.0%), reported by Ladeji and Okoye (1993).…”

“…The protein concentrations were within the range from 17.1 to 20.1 g/100 g. The mean of protein (18.670.9 g/100 g) in the hummayd leaf is lower than that of the sorrel leaf (25.072.0 g/100 g) in Nigeria, reported by Ladeji and Okoye (1993). Also, the protein value is lower than the value reported by Sengupta and Pal (1970) for Indian sorrel leaf. The average protein value is within the range for most unconventional leafy vegetables (Shingade et al, 1995).…”

“…The crude fibre content ranged from 6.0 to 10.1 g/100 g. The mean of crude fibre value (8.371.6 g/100 g) is higher than that of Indian sorrel (Sengupta and Pal, 1970), but is lower than that of Nigerian sorrel (Ladeji and Okoye, 1993). The result for crude fibre is much lower than those reported for parsley, lettuce, and spinach (KACST, 1995).…”

“…The ash content ranged between 14.6 and 19.6 g/100 g. The mean ash content (17.171.9 g/100 g) is similar to that of Indian sorrel (Sengupta and Pal, 1970), but is higher than that of Nigerian sorrel (Ladeji and Okoye, 1993). The ash content is within the range for most unconventional leafy vegetables (Shingade et al, 1995).…”

“…The lipid content ranged between 3.1 and 3.8 g/100 g. The mean of lipids (3.470.2 g/100 g) is slightly higher relative to the sorrel leaf of Nigeria (2.570.2 g/100 g) (Ladeji and Okoye, 1993) but much lower than that of Indian sorrel (Sengupta and Pal, 1970). Sridhar and Lakshminarayana (1993) reported the lipid levels in edible leaves, one among which is R. vesicarius.…”