Abelmoschus esculentus (L.

) Moench
Plant Introduction Authority ID Standing Family Topic Editors Data Stewards Referees Synonyms Hibiscus esculentus L. abelmoskus, america-neri, bakhua mun, bamia, Common names bamija, bamya, bandakai, bende', bhindee, bhindi (full list) Codes Categories Crop plant Roles Host Okra is native to the Old World tropics (West Africa) and has become established in the wild in some New World tropical areas. It is believed that okra first reached the New World during the days of slave trafficking. Okra is a popular and important food worldwide. A. esculentus is among the most heat- and drought-tolerant vegetable species in the world. It will tolerate poor soils with heavy clay and intermittent moisture. Severe frost can damage the pods. Okra is an upright, annual, tropical, herbaceous to slightly woody plant reaching 90-240 cm in height. It is grown for its fruits that are harvested for food consumption while still tender and immature. The name "okra" is of West African origin and is cognate with " k r " in Igbo, a language spoken in Nigeria.[3] In various Bantu languages, okra is called "kingombo" or a variant thereof, and this is the origin of its name in Portuguese, Spanish, Dutch and French. The Arabic "b myah" is the basis of the names in Cyprus, the Middle East, the Balkans, Iran, Afghanistan, Greece, North Africa and Russia. In Marathi, it is called Bhendi ( ). In Southern Asia, its name is usually a variant of "bhindi" or "vendi" ( in Tamil).This is one of the most popular dishes in the whole of India. In the Northern India, this is consumed as a processed vegetable as "bhindi masala" and in the south the list is long namely Poriyal (dryFry), Aviyal (Gravy Fry), Morekolambu (dish with curd). Okra is often known as lady's fingers outside of the United States, and gumbo in parts of the United States and English-speaking Caribbean, based on a corruption of the Portuguese word "quingombo," which is in turn a corruption of the word "quillobo," the word for the plant in some parts of eastern Africa. Magnoliophyta : Magnoliopsida : Malvales : Malvaceae (see lineages) (L.) Moench ID: 289 2009-10-29

Introduction 2009-10-29 In Vietnam, it is called u b p and is used in sour soup dish. In Nepal, it is called Ram Toriya and used in different ways. Ram Toiya fried with tomato is famous in Nepal.