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Useful Tropical Plants

Tridax procumbens

L.

Asteraceae

+ Synonyms

Amellus pedunculatus Ortega ex Willd.

Balbisia canescens Rich.

Balbisia divaricata Cass.

Balbisia elongata Willd.

Balbisia pedunculata Ortega ex Hoffmanns.

Chrysanthemum procumbens (L.) Sessé & Moc.

Common Name: Coat Buttons

Tridax procumbens
Plant growing in native habitat
Photograph by: Fagg, M.
Image credit to Australian National Botanic Gardens
Tridax procumbens Tridax procumbens Tridax procumbens Tridax procumbens Tridax procumbens

General Information

Coat buttons is a herbaceous perennial plant with creeping stems up to 75cm long that become erect at their ends. The stems produce new roots at the leaf nodes[
310
Title
Plant Resources of Southeast Asia
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://proseanet.org/
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
Lots of information on the uses of the plants of SE Asia.
,
713
Title
Australian Tropical Rainforest Plants
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://www.anbg.gov.au/cpbr/cd-keys/rfk/index.html
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
An online resource giving botanical information, and a little bit about plant usage, for over 2,700 species of plants found in the Australian rainforest.
].
The plant is sometimes harvested from the wild for local use as a food and medicine.

Known Hazards

Contact with this plant can sometimes cause skin irritation[
713
Title
Australian Tropical Rainforest Plants
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://www.anbg.gov.au/cpbr/cd-keys/rfk/index.html
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
An online resource giving botanical information, and a little bit about plant usage, for over 2,700 species of plants found in the Australian rainforest.
].

Botanical References


Range

Originally from Central America, the plant has become widespread as a weed in tropical and subtropical regions.

Habitat

Sunny, dry locations, especially sandy and rocky sites like roadsides, railways, dunes, and waste places, at elevations up to 1,000 metres[
310
Title
Plant Resources of Southeast Asia
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://proseanet.org/
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
Lots of information on the uses of the plants of SE Asia.
].

Properties

Weed PotentialYes
Edibility Rating *  *
Medicinal Rating *  *
Other Uses Rating *  *
HabitPerennial
Height0.40 m
PollinatorsInsects
Cultivation StatusWild

Cultivation Details


The plant is particularly well-adapted to coarse-textured soils[
305
Title
Pacific Island Ecosystems at Risk
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://www.hear.org/pier/scientificnames/index.html
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
A very good website detailing weed species that have been introduced into the Pacific Islands.
].
A widespread weed, spreading freely by means of its creeping stems and prolific production of seeds that are dispersed by the wind[
305
Title
Pacific Island Ecosystems at Risk
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://www.hear.org/pier/scientificnames/index.html
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
A very good website detailing weed species that have been introduced into the Pacific Islands.
].
Plants can flower and produce fruit all year round[
481
Title
Medicinal Plants in Papua New Guinea
Publication
 
Author
 
Publisher
World Health Organisation
Year
2009
ISBN
978-92-9061-249-0
Description
Traditional medicinal uses of 126 species from Papua New Guinea, including information on modern research into the plants.
].

Edible Uses

Leaves - cooked and eaten as a vegetable[
310
Title
Plant Resources of Southeast Asia
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://proseanet.org/
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
Lots of information on the uses of the plants of SE Asia.
,
724
Title
Pharmacognostical and Preliminary Phytochemical Studies of Leaves of Tridax procumbens.
Publication
 
Author
Prajapati K. Et al
Publisher
Ethnobotanical Leaflets 12: 1283-89.
Year
2008
ISBN
 
Description
A preliminary study of Tridax procumbens and its medicinal uses.
].

Medicinal

The leaves are antiseptic, haemostatic and parasiticide[
310
Title
Plant Resources of Southeast Asia
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://proseanet.org/
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
Lots of information on the uses of the plants of SE Asia.
]. They are used as a treatment against bronchial catarrh, dysentery, and diarrhoea[
310
Title
Plant Resources of Southeast Asia
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://proseanet.org/
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
Lots of information on the uses of the plants of SE Asia.
,
724
Title
Pharmacognostical and Preliminary Phytochemical Studies of Leaves of Tridax procumbens.
Publication
 
Author
Prajapati K. Et al
Publisher
Ethnobotanical Leaflets 12: 1283-89.
Year
2008
ISBN
 
Description
A preliminary study of Tridax procumbens and its medicinal uses.
]. The leaf powder, combined with that of Cicer arietium in a 2:1 ratio, is taken orally to treat diabetes[
724
Title
Pharmacognostical and Preliminary Phytochemical Studies of Leaves of Tridax procumbens.
Publication
 
Author
Prajapati K. Et al
Publisher
Ethnobotanical Leaflets 12: 1283-89.
Year
2008
ISBN
 
Description
A preliminary study of Tridax procumbens and its medicinal uses.
].
A fine paste of the leaves is applied externally to reduce swelling of haemorrhoids and to stop bleeding[
724
Title
Pharmacognostical and Preliminary Phytochemical Studies of Leaves of Tridax procumbens.
Publication
 
Author
Prajapati K. Et al
Publisher
Ethnobotanical Leaflets 12: 1283-89.
Year
2008
ISBN
 
Description
A preliminary study of Tridax procumbens and its medicinal uses.
].The leaf sap is applied topically to sores and ulcers[
481
Title
Medicinal Plants in Papua New Guinea
Publication
 
Author
 
Publisher
World Health Organisation
Year
2009
ISBN
978-92-9061-249-0
Description
Traditional medicinal uses of 126 species from Papua New Guinea, including information on modern research into the plants.
].

Agroforestry Uses:

The plant has been proposed as a cover crop, but its actual use and value are questionable[
310
Title
Plant Resources of Southeast Asia
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://proseanet.org/
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
Lots of information on the uses of the plants of SE Asia.
].

Other Uses

The leaf juice possesses insecticidal and parasiticidal properties[
310
Title
Plant Resources of Southeast Asia
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://proseanet.org/
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
Lots of information on the uses of the plants of SE Asia.
]. Smoke produced by burning the plant is used to repel mosquitoes[
481
Title
Medicinal Plants in Papua New Guinea
Publication
 
Author
 
Publisher
World Health Organisation
Year
2009
ISBN
978-92-9061-249-0
Description
Traditional medicinal uses of 126 species from Papua New Guinea, including information on modern research into the plants.
].

The leaves are used as a hair restorative[
724
Title
Pharmacognostical and Preliminary Phytochemical Studies of Leaves of Tridax procumbens.
Publication
 
Author
Prajapati K. Et al
Publisher
Ethnobotanical Leaflets 12: 1283-89.
Year
2008
ISBN
 
Description
A preliminary study of Tridax procumbens and its medicinal uses.
].

Propagation

Seed -
Division.
Cite as: Tropical Plants Database, Ken Fern. tropical.theferns.info. 2024-03-19. <tropical.theferns.info/viewtropical.php?id=Tridax%20procumbens>

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