Stachytarpheta jamaicensis
| Stachytarpheta jamaicensis | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| (unranked): | Angiosperms |
| (unranked): | Eudicots |
| (unranked): | Asterids |
| Order: | Lamiales |
| Family: | Verbenaceae |
| Genus: | Stachytarpheta |
| Species: | S. jamaicensis |
| Binomial name | |
| Stachytarpheta jamaicensis (L.) Vahl | |
| Synonyms | |
|
Stachytarpheta indica Vahl[1] | |
Stachytarpheta jamaicensis Is a species of plant in the Verbenaceae family. Native throughout the Caribbean, the species is commonly known as Blue porterweed or Jamaica vervain. It is pantropical, being found in the Indian Subcontinent, Southeastern Asia and West Tropical Africa, where it is known as Indian Snakeweed and Nettle-leaved vervain, formerly thought to be a separate species (Stachytarpheta indica).[2] It is usually found along country roadsides and it grows also well as a ruderal plant on disturbed terrain. It is an invasive species in some places.[3]
This plant can be also found on St. Croix, where it is locally known as "worryvine".
Medicinal usage
The fresh leaves are consumed in bush tea as a “cooling” tonic and blood cleanser, to treat “asthma” and “ulcerated stomachs”.[4]
Tea brewed from this species has been shown to cause a dose-dependent "fall in [the] blood pressure" of normal rabbits. However, the tea has also been observed to cause a "mild non-dose dependent systematic toxicity" in various tissues throughout the body, "such as congestion, fatty changes, and necrosis in liver, blood vessels, kidney, lung and testis, but the brain, eyes, intestines and heart were essentially normal." [5]
Gallery
-
_in_Talakona_forest%2C_AP_W_IMG_8384.jpg)
in Talakona forest, in Chittoor District of Andhra Pradesh, India.
-
_in_Talakona_forest%2C_AP_W_IMG_8374.jpg)
In Talakona forest
-
_in_Talakona_forest%2C_AP_W_IMG_8352.jpg)
In Talakona forest
-
_in_Talakona_forest%2C_AP_W_IMG_8329.jpg)
In Talakona forest
-
In Kerala
References
- ↑ Germplasm Resources Information Network (GRIN)
- ↑ Indian Snakeweed
- ↑ Stachytarpheta jamaicensis - Usambara Invasive Plants
- ↑ Brian N. Becker, Integration Of Medicinal And Culinary Herbs In An Agroforestry Combination On St. Croix, United States Virgin Islands (PDF)
- ↑ Professor MacDonald Idu. "The Plant called Medicine (PDF)" (PDF).
External links
 |
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Stachytarpheta jamaicensis. |