We are following the treatment in GRIN, but some other treatments, including the on-line Flore do Brasil, view Alternanthera ficoidea as a synonym of Alternanthera tenella Colla[].

Common Name:

General Information

Alternanthera ficoidea is an evergreen, herbaceous perennial plant growing from 15 - 30cm tall and spreading to form a mat of growth 45cm wide or more[].
The edible leaves are used locally, being harvested from the wild and the ornamental garden. The plant is widely grown in the tropics as an ornamental and ground cover plant, especially the forms with variegated foliage.

Known Hazards

None known

Botanical References

Range

S. America - Paraguay, Brazil, Bolivia, Colombia, Venezuela, the Guyanas; C. America - Panama; Caribbean - Trinidad to Cuba.

Habitat

Pastures, waste places, clearings etc[].

Properties

Edibility Rating
Medicinal Rating
Other Uses Rating
Habit	Evergreen Perennial
Height	0.25 m
Cultivation Status	Ornamental, Wild

Cultivation Details

Plants are hardy to about 1°c[].
Succeeds in full sun to partial shade[]. Prefers an organically rich, consistently moist, well-drained soil[].
The basic species has green leaves, but several cultivars have been developed where the green leaves are blotched with yellow, orange, red, brown, copper or purple, sometimes with red veining[].

Edible Uses

Leaves - raw or cooked[]. The leaves are eaten raw with rice, boiled as a potherb, or eaten with sambal, a hot pepper mixture[].

Medicinal

The plant might be useful as an antiviral agent[].

Agroforestry Uses:

Plants can be grown as ground cover[]. The densely matted growth makes it suitable to be used to protect soil against erosion[].

Other Uses

None known

Propagation

Seed -
Division. Quite easy, since the lower stems root into the ground.

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