Over the past weeks, Gardening While Black has published an inventory of select African Diaspora plants in five parts. For your reference, this is the complete list. We have assembled more than 100 plants from various sources - books, publications, prototype gardens and conferences - in order to identify plants that inextricably connected to the descendants of the Middle Passage and the peoples of West Africa.
Our select African Diaspora plant inventory is currently North American and Caribbean-centric. We will eventually add more plants from the gardening scene in West Africa, the Caribbean and South America.
PLANT | CLASS | BACKGROUND / ORIGINS | SOURCE |
Ackee/Akee Apple | Blighia sapida | West Africa; tropical; Ackee and salt fish - popular dish in Caribbean; fruit of Sapindaceae (Soapberry) | NYBG-Caribbean; In the Shadow of Slavery: Africa’s Botanical Legacy In The Atlantic World - 2009 (J. Carney) |
Aloe | Aloe vera | Native to tropical and southern Africa, Madagascar, Jordan, the Arabian Peninsula and islands in the Indian Ocean | |
Amaranth: Calaloo | Amaranthus spinosus | Domesticated in Africa, Americas and the Caribbean; Vegetable amaranth | NYBG-Caribbean; Truelove Seeds; In the Shadow of Slavery - 2009 (J. Carney) |
Annatto | Bixa orellana | Orange-red condiment/food coloring; thrives in warm, humid climates (India, Mexico, Brazil, Jamaica and other locations) | NYBG-Caribbean; Slow Food Foundation for Biodiversity (Slow Food Foundation) |
Arrowroot | Maranta arundinacea | West Indian arrowroot; from indigenous group, arawak; tropical root vegetable | |
Banana: African rhino horn, Grand Palm | Musa acuminata x musa balbisiana | ||
Basil: Besobela (Ethiopian Basil); Vana Tulsi | Ocimum basilicum var. minimum; Besobela - Ocimum spp/; Vana - Ocimum gratissimum | Besobela - Ethiopia; Vana - Africa, Madagascar, southern Asia,Bismarck Archipelago of New Guinea Vana - West African culinary herb | |
Bay Laurel | Laurus nobvbilis | ||
Bean (legume): Black turtle, Kebariuka, Red kidney bean (light), Pole snap bean | Phaseolus vulgaris | Farming While Black: Soul Fire Farm’s Practical Guide to Liberation on the Land - 2018 (L. Penniman); NYBG-Caribbean; Ujamaa Cooperative Farming Alliance | |
Bean: Lima bean; Speckled Brown Butterbean (Bush) | Phaseolus lunatus | Per Truelove, Speckled Brown Butterbean considered a traditional delicacy of North American South; origin in South America | |
Bean: Mbogo green | Lablab purpureus | Kenya; East Africa; Creator god Mbombo | Farming While Black - 2018 (L. Pennman); In the Shadow of Slavery: Africa’s Botanical Legacy In The Atlantic World - 2009 (J. Carney) |
Butterfly milkweed | Asclepius tuberosa | Native to eastern and southwest North America | |
Cassava, manihot, yuca | Manihot esculenta; Euphorbiaceae | Edible leaves and tuber; requires special cooking technique to reduce poison; Origin - tropics | NYBG-Caribbean; Ujamaa Cooperative Farming Alliance; Rose Hills Foundation Conservatory for Botanical Science |
Catnip | Nepeta cataria | Mint family; medicinal properties | |
Chayote | Sicyos edulis (educe); Sechium edule | Mexico-Central America-Caribbean; Squash, in gourd family - cucurbitaceae; used in many Cuban recipes; hot tropical gardens | NYBG-Caribbean; Slow Food Foundation; Heirloom Vegetable Gardening: A Master Gardener’s Guide To Planting, Seed Saving, and Cultural History - 2018 (W.W. Weaver) |
Cilantro (Coriander) | Coriandrum sativum | Edible annual herb likely native to the Mediterranean | |
Coffee (robusta) | Coffee robusta | West Africa | In the Shadow of Slavery - 2009 (J. Carney) |
Corn: Sea Island White Flint | Zea mays | Crops from Sea Islands, Georgia, South Carolina | |
Cucumber: Burr Gherkin, West Indian gherkin | Cucumis anguria | Angola to Caribbean | Farming While Black - 2018 (L. Penniman); In the Shadow of Slavery - 2009 (J. Carney) |
Cucumber: Cerasee (African cucumber/bitter melon/balsam pear) | Momordica charantia 'big top’, charantia ‘goya’, 'jade dragon’, ‘cundeamor' | Bitter melon leaf used in Jamaica for healing properties of leaves | NYBG-Caribbean; Truelove Seeds; In the Shadow of Slavery - 2009 (J. Carney) |
Culantro | Eryngium foetidum | Culinary and medicinal leafy greens commonly used in Caribbean and Latin America | |
Curry tree | Murraya koenigii | Tropical and subtropical tree native to Asia | NYBG-Caribbean |
Eggplant: Louisiana long green eggplant, Rosita, White Garden Egg | Solanum melongena | From Asia to Africa; fruits, Southern and Creole gardens | Farming While Black - 2018 (L. Penniman) |
Eggplant: Striped Garden Egg (Striped Toga Eggplant), White Garden Egg, Rotunda Red Eggplant | Solanum aethiopicum var. Gilo | Rotunda Red Eggplant arrived in Europe from Africa by end of the 19th century | Truelove Seeds; Sistah Seeds; Slow Food Foundation; In the Shadow of Slavery - 2009 (J. Carney) |
Elderberry | Mentyha x piperita | ||
Garlic: Music | Allium sativum var. Ophioscorodom | ||
Ginger, Peruvian yellow | Zingiber officinale | ||
Gourd: Birdhouse Gourd, Bradshaw’s Bottle Gourd | Lagenaria siceraria | NYBG-African-American; While Black - 2018 (L. Penniman); In the Shadow of Slavery - 2009 (J. Carney) | |
Greens (Collard Greens): Alabama Blue, Green Glaze, Nancy Malone Wheat Purple, Variegated, William Alexander | Brassica oleracea | NYBG-African-American; Farming While Black - 2018 (L. Penniman); Truelove Seeds | |
Greens: Dandelion | Cichorium intybus ‘Catalogna’ | NYBG-African-American; Farming While Black - 2018 (L. Penniman) | |
Greens: East African, Ethiopian Blue Kale | Brassica carinata | Amara Ethiopia | Farming While Black - 2018 (L. Penniman); Sistah Seeds |
Greens: Efo Gburę, Waterleaf | Talinum fruticosum; Talcum triangulare | Nigeria leafy vegetable | |
Greens: Efo shoko, Lagos spinach/Nigerian spinach | Celosia argentea | Nigeria, Benin, Congo and Cameroon; type of Celosia; related to Amaranth | |
Greens: Eggplant, Gbognome collard | Solanum melongena; Solanum macrocarpon | Togo, West Africa; edible leaves | Farming While Black - 2018 (L. Penniman); Sistah Seeds |
Greens: Lacinato Rainbow Mix, Premier, Moses Smith Yellow Cabbage Collard | Brassica oleracea | Moses Smith Yellow Cabbage Collard is part of the heirloom collards project; received by the Seed Savers Exchange in 2016. | |
Greens (Mustard): Carolina Broadleaf, Southern Giant Curled | Brassica juncea | ||
Greens (Turnip): Seven Top Turnips | Brassica rapa | 1830s Virginia | |
Greens (Spinach): Molokhia Egyptian Spinach | Corchorus olitorius | Ghana, Burkina Faso; Palestine | Farming While Black - 2018 (L. Penniman); Truelove Seeds |
Greens (Cress): Creasy Greens | Barbarea verna | Commonly referred to as mountain cress | |
Guinea pepper | Xylopia aethiopica | In the Shadow of Slavery - 2009 (J. Carney) | |
Hibiscus (Sorrel): Doc’s North, Florida, Roselle, Red | Hibiscus sabdariffa | Roselle, Hibiscus, Bissau | NYBG-African-American; In the Shadow of Slavery - 2009 (J. Carney); NYBG-Caribbean; Truelove Seeds |
Hibiscus (Sorrel): Shoeblack Hibiscus | Hibiscus rosa-sinensis | Choeblack; rose cayenne | |
Hibiscus (Sorrel): White | Hibiscus albus | Senegal | Farming While Black - 2018 (L. Penniman); In the Shadow of Slavery - 2009 (J. Carney) |
Jamaican vervain | Stachytarpheta jamaicensis | Grows in Caribbean and Central America; commonly used for medicinal purposes and tea | |
Jute Mallow: ewedu | Corchorus Olitorius | West Africa; Leafy green vegetable (soups/sauces) | |
Melon: Georgia Rattlesnake Watermelon | Citrullus lanatus | West Africa | Truelove Seeds; NYBG-African-American; Farming While Black - 2018 (L. Penniman) |
Melon: Muskmelon | Cucumis melo L. | West Africa | In the Shadow of Slavery - 2009 (J. Carney) |
Melon: Egusi melon | Cucumeropsis edulis (cucurbitaceous) | West Africa | In the Shadow of Slavery - 2009 (J. Carney); Colonial Williamsburg Sankofa Heritage Garden |
Millet: Dragon’s Claw | Eleusine coracana | Finger Millet | NYBG-African-American; Farming While Black - (L. Penniman); Colonial Williamsburg Sankofa Heritage Garden |
Millet: Pearl Millet; Guinea Millet | Pennisetum glaucum; Cenchrus americanus; Brachiaria deflexa | NYBG-African-American; In the Shadow of Slavery - 2009 (J. Carney); Colonial Williamsburg Sankofa Heritage Garden | |
Nut: Bambara Groundnut, Goober pea, Zimbabwe Red Bambara | Vigna subterranea (formerly Voandzia subterranean) | Africa - Ethiopia, Mali Angola, Northern Nigeria/Caneroon; Bambara nut, Pindar | NYBG-African-American; Farming While Black - (L. Penniman); In the Shadow of Slavery - 2009 (J. Carney); Ujamaa Cooperative Farming Alliance; Colonial Williamsburg Sankofa Heritage Garden |
Nut: Peanut (Goober nut), Carolina Runner, Peanut Black Runner; Black Pindar Peanut | Arachis hypogaea | Native to South America | NYBG-African-American; Farming While Black - 2018 (L. Penniman); NYBG-Caribbean; 100 Vegetables - 2000 (W.W. Weaver); Colonial Williamsburg Sankofa Heritage Garden |
Nut: Kola nut | Cola nitida; Cola acuminata | West African | In the Shadow of Slavery - 2009 (J. Carney) |
Okra: Alabama Red, Burgundy, Cowtown, Hill Country Red, Puerto Rico Everblush, Sea Island Red, White Velvet; Catawba Freedman Okra | Abelmoschus esculentus; Hibiscus esculentus | Sea Island Red (Gullah Geechee community); White Velvet (variety provided to William Woys Weaver in the. Mid-1990s) | NYBG-African-American; Farming While Black - (L. Penniman); Truelove Seeds; Sistah Seeds; The Whole Okra - 2019 (Chris Smith); In the Shadow of Slavery - 2009 (J. Carney); Heirloom Vegetable Gardening - 2018 (W.W. Weaver); Ujamaa Cooperative Farming Alliance |
Okra: Moody Family Okra | Abelmoschus caillei | West Africa | |
Onion: Alisa Craig, New York Early, Red Wethersfield, Figaro Rodriguez | Allium cepa; Allium cepa var. Aggregatum | ||
Onion: Chives | Allium schoenoprasum |