Euphorbia hirta

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Euphorbia hirta
Starr 080604-5935 Chamaesyce hirta.jpg
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Clade: Rosids
Order: Malpighiales
Family: Euphorbiaceae
Genus: Euphorbia
Species:
E. hirta
Binomial name
Euphorbia hirta
Synonyms [2]
  • Chamaesyce gemella(Lag.) Small
  • Chamaesyce hirta(L.) Millsp.
  • Chamaesyce karwinskyi(Boiss.) Millsp.
  • Chamaesyce roseiMillsp.
  • Desmonema hirta(L.) Raf.
  • Euphorbia bancanaMiq.
  • Euphorbia capitataLam.
  • Euphorbia chrysochaetaW.Fitzg.
  • Euphorbia gemellaLag.
  • Euphorbia globuliferaKunth
  • Euphorbia karwinskyiBoiss.
  • Euphorbia nodifloraSteud.
  • Euphorbia obliterataJacq.
  • Euphorbia pilulifera(L.) Thell.
  • Euphorbia verticillataVell.
Euphorbia hirta in Panchkhal valley Euphorbia hirta NP.JPG
Euphorbia hirta in Panchkhal valley

Euphorbia hirta (sometimes called asthma-plant [3] ) is a pantropical weed, originating from the tropical regions of the Americas. [4] It is a hairy herb that grows in open grasslands, roadsides and pathways. It is widely used in traditional herbal medicine across many cultures, particularly for asthma, skin ailments, and hypertension. [5] It is also consumed in herbal tea form as folk medicine for fevers in the Philippines (where it is known as tawa-tawa), particularly for dengue fever and malaria. [6] [7]

Contents

Description

This erect or prostrate annual herb can grow up to 60 cm (24 in) long with a solid stem that is furnished with many yellow to reddish coarse hairs, and produces an abundant white latex. [8] There are stipules present. The leaves have an oblique base and are simple, elliptical to slightly rhombic, hairy (on both upper and lower surfaces but particularly on the veins on the lower leaf surface), with a finely dentate margin, the veins upperside being deep-set and conspicuous on the underside, and the leaf surface somewhat leathery. Leaves occur in opposite pairs on the stem. The flowers are unisexual and found in axillary cymes at each leaf node, held as dense balls of flowers and fruit capsules usually close to the stem, the flower glands with tiny white/pinkish petal-like appendages. The fruit is a capsule with three valves (creating 3 sides), uniformly appressed hairy, containing tiny (0.7–0.9 mm), oblong, four-sided orange to pink or red seeds. It has a white or brown taproot. FNA

Flowers of Euphorbia hirta Flowers of Euphorbia hirta.jpg
Flowers of Euphorbia hirta
Pollen grains of Euphorbia hirta Pollen grains of Euphorbia hirta.jpg
Pollen grains of Euphorbia hirta

References

  1. ↑ "Euphorbia hirta". World Checklist of Selected Plant Families (WCSP). Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew . Retrieved 20 July 2019.
  2. ↑ "Euphorbia hirtaL.". Plants of the World Online. Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Retrieved 2019-07-20.
  3. ↑ BSBI List 2007 (xls). Botanical Society of Britain and Ireland. Archived from the original (xls) on 2015-06-26. Retrieved 2014-10-17.
  4. ↑ "The Royal Botanic Garden Sydney PlantNET Database Entry". Royal Botanical Gardens Sydney. Retrieved 2021-01-23.
  5. ↑ Kumar S, Malhotra R, Kumar D (2010). "Euphorbia hirta: Its chemistry, traditional and medicinal uses, and pharmacological activities". Pharmacognosy Reviews. 4 (7): 58–61. doi: 10.4103/0973-7847.65327 . PMC   3249903 . PMID   22228942.
  6. ↑ Yam, Hilton Y.; Montaño, Marco Nemesio E.; Sia, Isidro C.; Heralde, Francisco M. III; Tayao, Lotgarda (2018). "Ethnomedicinal Uses of tawatawa (Euphorbia hirta Linn.) in Selected Communities in the Philippines: a Non-invasive Ethnographic Survey Using Pictures for Plant Identification". Acta Medica Philippina. 52 (5). doi: 10.47895/amp.v52i5.325 .
  7. ↑ "'Tawa-tawa': Herbal supplement that can help fight dengue". PhilStar Global. 8 October 2019. Retrieved 7 September 2021.
  8. ↑ "Open Source for Weed Assessment in Lowland Paddy Fields (OSWALD)". Asia IT&C Programme of the European Union. 2007-07-21. Archived from the original on July 9, 2013. Retrieved August 30, 2013.

Further reading

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