Dianella ensifolia (L.) DC.

Etymology	Genus	Diana, a goddness in Greek Mythology
	Species	Sword-shaped leaves
Family		Hemerocallidaceae
Synonyms		Charlwoodia ensata (Thunb.) Göpp, Cordyline ensifolia (L.) Planch., Dracaena ensifolia L.
Common Names		Flax Lily, Akar Siak
Status		Native: Least Concern
Form		Herb
Native Distribution		Southeast Asia and Pacific Islands

Diagnostics:

Dianella ensifolia can be found in sunny areas of our rainforests and also along the rocky shores. It grows in clumps with grass-like leaves. The flowers can be purple-blue, white, or yellow (Samy et al., 2014). The berry ripens to bluish purple.

Interesting Facts:

The various parts of the plant is used in traditional medicine in parts of Southeast Asia. The roots are chewed or applied as a vermifuge in Vietnam and Peninsular Malaysia. The leaves are also used to treat wounds and ailments like boils, itch, iaundice, etc. See more at Samy et al. (2014).

References

Samy J, M Sugumaran & KLW Lee. (2014) 100 Useful Herbs of Malaysia and Singapore. Marshall Cavendish Edition, Singapore. 247 pp.


Author: Siyang
Posted: 2014-03-15 / Modified: 2017-12-25