Okra

Abelmoschus is New Latin from Arabic أَبُو المِسْك (ʾabū l-misk, “father of musk”),[3] while esculentus is Latin for being fit for human consumption.[4]

The first use of the word okra (alternatively; okro or ochro) appeared in 1679 in the Colony of Virginia, deriving from the Igbo word ọ́kụ̀rụ̀.[5] The word gumbo was first used in American vernacular around 1805, deriving from Louisiana Creole,[6] but originates from either the Umbundu word ochinggômbo[7] or the Kimbundu word ki-ngombo.[8] Despite the fact that in most of the United States the word gumbo often refers to the dish, gumbo, many places in the Deep South may have used it to refer to the pods and plant as well as many other variants of the word found across the African diaspora in the Americas.[9]

Whole plant with blossom and immature pod

Okra is an allopolyploid of uncertain parentage. However, proposed parents include Abelmoschus ficulneus, A. tuberculatus and a reported "diploid" form of okra.[10] Truly wild (as opposed to naturalised) populations are not known with certainty, and the West African variety has been described as a cultigen.[11]

The geographical origin of okra is disputed, with supporters of Southeast Asian,[11] South Asian, Ethiopian and West African origins.[12] The Egyptians and Moors of the 12th and 13th centuries used the Arabic word for the plant, bamya, suggesting it had come into Egypt from Arabia, but earlier it was probably taken from Ethiopia to Arabia. The plant may have entered southwest Asia across the Red Sea or the Bab-el-Mandeb strait to the Arabian Peninsula, rather than north across the Sahara, or from India. One of the earliest European accounts is by a Spanish Moor who visited Egypt in 1216 and described the plant under cultivation by the locals who ate the tender, young pods with meal.[13] From Arabia, the plant spread around the shores of the Mediterranean Sea and eastward.[14]

Plants about one week after germination (Oklahoma, USA

The plant was introduced to the Americas by ships plying the Atlantic slave trade[15] by 1658, when its presence was recorded in Brazil. It was further documented in Suriname in 1686. Okra may have been introduced to southeastern North America from Africa in the early 18th century. By 1748, it was being grown as far north as Philadelphia.[16] Thomas Jefferson noted it was well established in Virginia by 1781. It was commonplace throughout the Southern United States by 1800, and the first mention of different cultivars was in 1806.[13]

Pollen grains

Cross-section of a pod

The species is a perennial, often cultivated as an annual in temperate climates, often growing to around 2 metres (6 ft 7 in) tall. As a member of the Malvaceae, it is related to such species as cotton, cocoa, and hibiscus. The leaves are 10–20 centimetres (4–8 in) long and broad, palmately lobed with 5–7 lobes. The flowers are 4–8 centimetres (1+5⁄8–3+1⁄8 in) in diameter, with five white to yellow petals, often with a red or purple spot at the base of each petal. The pollens are spherical and approximately 188 microns in diameter. The fruit is a capsule up to 18 centimetres (7 in) long with pentagonal cross-section, containing numerous seeds.

Abelmoschus esculentus is cultivated throughout the tropical and warm temperate regions of the world for its fibrous fruits or pods containing round, white seeds. It is among the most heat- and drought-tolerant vegetable species in the world and will tolerate soils with heavy clay and intermittent moisture, but frost can damage the pods. In cultivation, the seeds are soaked overnight prior to planting to a depth of 1–2 centimetres (3⁄8–13⁄16 in). It prefers a soil temperature of at least 20 °C (68 °F) for germination, which occurs between six days (soaked seeds) and three weeks. As a tropical plant, it also requires a lot of sunlight, and it should also be cultivated in soil that has a pH between 5.8 and 7, ideally on the acidic side.[17] Seedlings require ample water. The seed pods rapidly become fibrous and woody and, to be edible as a vegetable, must be harvested when immature, usually within a week after pollination.[18] The first harvest will typically be ready about 2 months after planting, and it will be approximately 2–3 inches (51–76 mm) long.[17]

The most common disease afflicting the okra plant is verticillium wilt, often causing a yellowing and wilting of the leaves. Other diseases include powdery mildew in dry tropical regions, leaf spots, yellow mosaic and root-knot nematodes. Resistance to yellow mosaic virus in A. esculentus was transferred through a cross with Abelmoschus manihot and resulted in a new variety called Parbhani kranti.[19]

In the United States much of the supply is grown in Florida, especially around Dade in southern Florida.[20][21] Okra is grown throughout the state to some degree, so okra is available ten months of the year.[20] Yields range from less than 18,000 pounds per acre (20,000 kg/ha) to over 30,000 pounds per acre (34,000 kg/ha).[20] Wholesale prices can go as high as $18/bushel which is $0.60 per pound ($1.3/kg).[20] The Regional IPM Centers provide integrated pest management plans for use in the state.[20]

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  Large okra plants
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  A giant okra pod
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  Flower close-up
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  Young seedling showing cotyledons
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  Sautéed fruits with coriander
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  Bamia, stewed okra with tomatoes
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  Bhindi bharta, a South Asian dish
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  Fresh-picked fruits (grown in Eastern Oklahoma, USA)
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  Deep fried fuit pieces

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Abelmoschus esculentus.

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• Okra

Look up okra in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.

• Abelmoschus esculentus in West African plants – A Photo Guide.