Weir vine facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Weir vine |
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The Ipomoea calobra, also known as weir vine, is a special plant that grows in northern Australia. You can mostly find it in Western Australia and Queensland.
Contents
What Does It Look Like?
The weir vine is a climbing plant. It can grow really tall, sometimes up to 6 meters high! It has beautiful trumpet-shaped flowers. These flowers can be purple, blue, or pink. You can usually see them blooming from January to June.
Where Does It Grow?
This plant likes to grow in different kinds of places. You can find it on flat plains, sand dunes, and hard, flat areas. It prefers red sandy soil, clay soil, and even rocky soil. The weir vine often climbs up trees like mulga and other acacia trees.
A Special Food Source
The Ipomoea calobra has special parts underground called 'tubers'. These are like small potatoes. The tubers are safe to eat. They were a very important food for Indigenous Australians. They call this kind of food 'bush tucker'.
The tubers are similar to sweet potatoes in terms of what's good for you inside them. They have lots of starch, which gives you energy. They also contain important minerals like potassium, copper, and zinc.
Indigenous Names for the Plant
Indigenous Australians have different names for Ipomoea calobra depending on where they live:
- In the Murchison-Gascoyne area of Western Australia, it's called kulyu.
- The Tjupan Ngalia group near Leonora, Western Australia, call it wutha or wather.
