The succulent can strengthen bones, while keeping cold and cough at bay Photo: Harsha R PI remember my mother eagerly waiting for the rainy season to begin and for the tender shoots and fresh leaves of narale to sneak out from the trees in our courtyard in a central Karnataka village. Narale (Cissus quadrangularis) or devil’s backbone, as the succulent plant is known, remains dormant the whole year and starts regenerating soon after it receives the first shower of rain in June. Till October, my mother would regularly collect its angular shoots and leaves for making chutney and serve it with an advice: the zigzagged stems can fight kidney stones.