Cardiospermum halicacabum SEEDS

Cardiospermum halicacabum seeds grow into the balloon vine or love-in-a-puff a delicate annual or short-lived perennial liana with a pantropical and subtropical distribution spanning the Tropics and Subtropics worldwide. Described by Linnaeus. The generic name Cardiospermum means ‘heart-seeded’ (from Greek kardia = heart + sperma = seed), a perfect description of the large black seeds each bearing a conspicuous white heart-shaped mark. The epithet halicacabum comes from Greek for ‘salt barrel’, referring to the inflated papery fruit capsules. One of the ten sacred flowers of Kerala. Extraordinarily wide medicinal use: Ayurvedic, African traditional medicine, and modern anti-inflammatory products. Multi-use plant: animal food, invertebrate food, environmental uses, social uses. Family Sapindaceae.

Full sun; well-drained soils; warm tropical to subtropical conditions; drought-tolerant. Fast-growing annual to perennial liana to 3 m. Self-seeds freely in warm climates.

• ‘Halicacabum’ = salt barrel (Greek, inflated fruit); L. (Linnaeus); heart-marked seeds; Kerala sacred flower
• Multi-use: animal food, poison, medicine, invertebrate food, environmental, social; ‘love-in-a-puff’
• Tropics & Subtropics (cosmopolitan) seasonally dry tropical biome; liana; Ayurvedic medicine
• Genus Cardiospermum: Tropical & Subtropical; heart-seeded vines; Family Sapindaceae; Order Sapindales
• Full sun; drought-tolerant; well-drained soils; fast-growing annual liana; self-seeding; Family Sapindaceae

Cardiospermum halicacabum the balloon vine is one of the most widely distributed tropical lianas on earth, its delicate papery fruit capsules enclosing seeds so perfectly heart-marked they inspired the plant’s scientific name, while its extraordinary range of medicinal applications across Asia, Africa and the Americas makes it one of traditional medicine’s most versatile climbing plants.

IMPORTANT: Pictures show the adult plant, which is not for sale. The offer is only for seeds.