Tribulus Terrestris Plant
Tribulus terrestris, also known as Puncturevine, is a prostrate annual herb that grows from a simple taproot. The tribulus plant produces numerous stems, up to several feet long, that are much branched and arise from the crown to produce a dense mat. The tribulus terrestris fruit is a woody burr with sharp, rigid spines (strong enough to puncture bicycle tires or penetrate shoe soles). Tribulus is Latin for “three-pointed, a caltrop,” the shape of which is suggested by the three-pronged tribulus fruit, and referring to the caltrop, a military weapon, an iron ball with projecting spikes
Cultivation and uses
The plant is widely naturalised in the Americas and also in Australia south of its native range. In some states in the United States, it is considered an invasive species.[3]
It has been reported that puncture vine seeds have been used in homicidal weapons in southern Africa; murderers smear them with the poisonous juice of Acokanthera venenata and put them where victims are likely to step.
Uses : Roots and fruits are sweet, cooling, diuretic, aphrodisiac, emollient, appetizer, digestive, anthelmintic, expectorant, anti-inflammatory, laxative, cardiotonic, styptic and tonic. They are useful in strangury, dysuria, renal and vesical calculi, anorexia, dyspepsia, helminthiasis, cough, asthma, inflammations, cardiopathy, spermatorrhoea, anaemia, scabies, ophthalmia and general weakness.
Precautions for using Tribulus Terrestris
Though this plant has many benefits, intake of the same should be avoided during certain times. Pregnant women should not consume this plant extracts at any point of time during their pregnancy. Also people, who suffer from hormonal problems and are dependent on medicines for the same like breast cancer or similar forms, should not use tribulus.
Like other weedy species, Tribulus has many common names. Puncture vine, caltrop and goat’s head are the most widely used. Tribulus terrestris L. is a ground-hugging herbaceous perennial plant that grows as a summer annual in colder climates. Its reddish branches spread radially from a central point up to a diameter of about 3 feet, bearing small, oblong leaflets which may form flat patches along the ground. Fruits are easy to identify due to their unique shape comprising four single-seeded nutlets bearing two sharp spines that can puncture bicycle tires or cause considerable pain to bare feet. The goat’s head common name for this plant reflects its fruit’s characteristic shape.
