Common Name:

General Information

Lobelia zeylanica is a prostrate to ascending, annual to perennial plant with stems up to 90cm long. The stems grow along the ground, rooting at the lower nodes, then ascending to 20cm tall[, , ].
The edible leaves are sometimes gathered from the wild and used locally.

Known Hazards

Many, if not all, species in the genus Lobelia contain a range of piperidine alkaloids, particularly lobeline and lobelanine. If ingested, these can cause a range of symptoms including nausea, vomiting, diarrhoea, salivation, exhaustion and weakness, dilation of pupils, convulsions, and coma. Generally, the degree of toxicity is only moderate and plants are only harmful in larger quantities - indeed several species have medicinal uses and a few are even eaten as wild foods[]

Botanical References

,

Range

E. Asia - China, Indian subcontinent, Myanmar, Thailand, Malaysia, Indo-China, Indonesia, Philippines

Habitat

By water and streams in ravines at elevations up to 1,500 metres[]. Often abundantly naturalized along trails in dense forest and also in dry forest, wet clearings, cocoa plantations, pastures, marshes, and swamps, and along roadsides in Fiji[].

Properties

Weed Potential	Yes
Edibility Rating
Habit	Perennial
Height	0.20 m
Cultivation Status	Wild

Cultivation Details

The plant has become an invasive weed in some of the Pacific Islands, particularly Fiji[].
Plants can flower and produce fruit almost all year round[].

Edible Uses

Young leaves - eaten with rice[, ]. The leaves are steamed and eaten as 'lalab' with rice[].

Medicinal

None known

Other Uses

None known

Propagation

Seed -

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