Other Names: Passiflora, Maypop, water lemon, wild apricot
Passion Flower (Passiflora; syn. Disemma Labill.) is a genus of about 500 species of flowering plants in the
family Passifloraceae. They are mostly vines, with some being shrubs, and a few species being herbaceous.
The family Passifloraceae is found world wide, excluding Europe and Antarctica. Maypop (Passiflora incarnata), a
common species in the southern US, is a subtropical representative of this mostly tropical family. However, it
thrives in New York City gardens. Its fruit is edible but quite seedy.
Passiflora incarnata leaves and roots have a long history of use among Native Americans, in North America. Passiflora
edulis and a few other species are used in Central and South America. The fresh or dried leaves are used to make
an infusion, a tea that is used to treat insomnia, hysteria, and epilepsy, and is also valued for its painkilling
properties. They have been found to contain beta-carboline harmala alkaloids which are Monoamine oxidase
inhibitors (MAOIs) with anti-depressant properties. They are particularly effective in treating atypical
depression, and have also shown efficacy in helping smokers to quit.
Containing MAOIs, the flower has only traces of the chemicals but the leaves and the roots of some species have
been used to enhance the effects of mind-altering drugs.
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