Recent studies have shown fruits from less-known and unexplored plants as an excellent source of
nutrients and biologically active compounds for food and non-food applications (Khan et al. 2011, 2015).
Basella plant is extremely heat tolerant and fast-growing perennial vine which is wildly cultivated as a
cool-season vegetable. Basella alba is also known as Malabar spinach, Indian spinach, Ceylon spinach,
climber spinach and vine spinach. In India, it is commonly known as “Poi”. Red-violet colour of leaves,
stalks, petioles and fruits are due to the presence of betalains (Palada et al, 1999). This crop is suitable
for both home and market garden in the lowland tropics. This plant is full of nutrition like normal
spinach. Also, the oil obtained from its seeds can become the source of safe vegetable oil. This plant is
good for health due to the presence of mineral, protein, oil, carbohydrate, fibre, carotenoid, organic
acid, vitamins. In the winter season, Malabar spinach can be used in place of normal spinach as it has
similar Nutritional and medicinal value. Basella plant species contain betacyanin, carotenoids,
bioflavonoids, β-sitosterol and lupeol which are reported to have antioxidant, antiproliferative,
antimicrobial, anti-inflammatory activities etc. and help in curing various diseases, namely anticancer,
antiviral, antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, anti-cholesterol, anti-ulcer, antimicrobial, anti-hypoglycemic,
wound healing, androgenic from the ancient times. Leaf juice is used in to treat catarrh and it is also an
as safe laxative for children, pregnant women and in a urinary diseased patient. In Ayurveda Malabar
spinach is called as “Upodika”, “Potaki”, “Malvaa”, “Amritvallari”, and in Siddha/Tamil as “Vaslakkirai”
(Khare, 2004). It used as a vegetable in many countries like Philippines, Thailand China, Mongolia, India,
Sri Lanka and many African countries. In India, In Andhra Pradesh curry of Basella and Yam is made
popularly known as Kanda Bachali Koora, in Odisha, it is used to make Curries and Saaga.
Chaurasiya, Ajay, et al. "An updated review on Malabar spinach (Basella alba and Basella rubra) and their
importance." Journal of Pharmacognosy and Phytochemistry 10.2 (2021): 1201-1207.
Malabar spinach (Basella alba) is an underexploited tropical leafy vegetable with high nutritional value
and therapeutic properties. The leaves are rich in polyphenols, flavonoids, and antioxidants. Identifying
appropriate drying methods and conditions for B. alba leaf production and storage can stimulate large-
scale manufacture while preserving its intrinsic bioactive components. In this study, an investigation has
been carried out to study the impact of thin-layer drying conditions on the retention of bioactive
components in B. alba leaves. Drying tests were performed in a hot air oven (50, 60, 70 °C), microwave
(600, 650, 700, 750,800 W), and freeze dryer (freezing temperature: -35 °C and vacuum pressure:150
mbar). The drying characteristics of the leaves were investigated. Semi-empirical thin-layer drying
models were fitted to the obtained data with the intent to predict the drying behaviour of leaves.
Amongst the fitted models, Page and Aghbashlo models showed the best performance with a high R2
value (0.98 – 0.99). The total drying time taken for microwave drying was 98.25% less than the hot air
oven drying and 99.19% less than freeze drying. Maximum retention of total phenolic (4.80 ± 0.12 mg
GAE g−1) and total flavonoid (5.95 ± 0.02 mg GAE g−1) compounds was observed in freeze-dried
samples. Microwave dried samples showed high antioxidant activity than other samples due to less
processing time. Results also revealed a less activation energy of 2.22 kJ mol−1 for microwave drying
with high moisture diffusivity (1.54 × 10–9 to 4.09 × 10–9 m2s−1).
Kumar, Gulshan, et al. "Effect of thin layer drying conditions on the retention of bioactive components in
Malabar spinach (Basella alba) leaves." Food Chemistry Advances 3 (2023): 100419.
or malabar spinach locally known as alugbati is a tropical leafy Basella , indigenous vegetable commonly
grown for its succulent, nutritious, and tender stems. It has also a number of medicinal applications.
Despite its many uses and potential value, its importance is under estimated. The study was conducted
to evaluate the effects of different mulching materials on the growth and yield of two species grown in a
rolling soil in the Basella marginal uplands of in Inopacan, Leyte. A factorial experiment was setup with
Alugbati species/varieties as the main plot factor and the different mulching materials as the sub-plot.
Treatments were: T0-control, T1-rice hull, T2-rice straw and T3-plastic mulch. Basella alba, the green-
stemed alugbati had significantly bigger stems, greater number and heavier shoots than the red-stemed.
Leaf Basella rubra spot disease caused by was more evident in Colletotrichum sp. B. rubra. Regardless of
the mulching materials used, mulched plants yielded higher than the unmulched plants or those planted
in bare soil. Moreover, the use of silver plastic mulch resulted to the highest total yield. The results
indicate the high potential of mulching in increasing the yield and thus the profitability of alugbati
production.
Z.C. Gonzaga Department of Horticulture, Visayas State University, ViscaBaybayCity, Leyte 6521-A
zcgonzaga@yahoo.comEmail:Increasing Productivity of Malabar Spinach (Basellaalba Basella rubraL. and
L.) Grown in the MarginalUpland Area of Inopacan, Leyte Through DifferentMulching Materi, 2015
