Asian pigeon wings (Clitoria ternatea), commonly known by many other names like, bluebellvine, blue pea, butterfly pea, and Darwin pea, is another climber plant belonging to the family Fabaceae.
🌿It is a perennial herbaceous plant, with compound leaves having elliptic leaflets.
🌿It grows as a vine or creeper, doing well in moist, neutral soil.
🫐 The most striking feature about this plant is the color of its flowers, a vivid deep blue, with light yellow markings. Some varieties yield pale blue or white flowers.
🌿The fruits are 5–7 cm long, flat pods with six to ten seeds in each pod. They are edible when tender.
🫛🌿It is grown as an ornamental plant requiring little care when cultivated. Being a legume, its roots form a symbiotic association with soil bacteria known as rhizobia, which transform atmospheric N2 into a plant-usable form (a process called nitrogen fixing), therefore, this plant is also used to improve soil quality through the decomposition of nitrogen rich plant material.
🌿In Southeast Asia, the flower is used as a natural food colouring
In Burmese and Thai cuisines, the flowers are also dipped in batter and fried.
🫐🌿Butterfly pea flower tea is made from the ternatea flowers, this tea is commonly mixed with honey and lemon to increase acidity and turn the beverage a pink-purple color, to produce for a drink usually served after dinner, or as a refreshment.The tea is found in both hot and cold varieties
🫐🌿In traditional Ayurvedic medicine, it is ascribed various qualities including memory enhancing, nootropic, antistress, anxiolytic, antidepressant, anticonvulsant, tranquilizing, and sedative properties.
🌿 In traditional Chinese medicine, its extract is used for its ability to reduce intensity of behavior caused by serotonin and acetylcholine.
🌿The flower can be used to dye natural fibers.
🙏🌿 In India, it is revered as a holy flower, used in daily puja rituals.
ClitoraTernatea
Blue Pea Flower
Reference
Plant of Singapore
