Corchorus tridens L. is a wild, herbaceous plant belonging to the Malvaceae family, widely recognized for its edible, mucilaginous leaves and traditional medicinal applications across Africa and Asia.
Wild jute (Corchorus tridens, family Malvaceae) is an annual herb up to 1 metre tall, usually upright and branched, closely related to the jute mallow (Corchorus olitorius) grown as a leaf vegetable. It is eaten as a vegetable where it grows, gathered from the wild, grown in home gardens or tolerated as a weed, and its leaves are easily dried and stored. In market gardening it cannot compete with the higher-yielding jute mallow.
It occurs in tropical Africa and the Indian subcontinent, in savanna, woodland and scrub and as a weed of farmland, up to 1,700 metres but mostly below 700 metres. It prefers temperatures of 22 to 35°C and well-drained alluvial or sandy loam soils. It is rather drought resistant and can go a month without rain, though young plants are very sensitive to waterlogging. Growth is fast in the rainy season: plants flower about six weeks after germination, leaves can be picked from about 40 days and then every fortnight, and seeds ripen 90 to 110 days after sowing. Seed dormancy can make germination poor, but a short dip in boiling water or an overnight soak speeds it up, and the seed keeps for eight to twelve months in sealed jars.
Source: Useful Tropical Plants database (Fern, K.).
Treats digestive problems (stomach pain, diarrhea)
Used for STIs and fever/pain
Leaves applied to wounds and burns
Has antimicrobial and antioxidant activity
Leaves eaten as a mucilaginous vegetable in soups
Nutritious: rich in vitamins (A, C, E), proteins, minerals
Also used as animal fodder
Propagated mainly by seeds
Seeds sown at start of rainy season
Hot-water soaking improves germination
Leaves harvested 4–6 weeks after planting