The genus name is often spelled Siegesbeckia.

Common Name:

General Information

Siegesbeckia orientalis is an erect, annual plant, growing from a tap-root, usually with spreading branches from low down; it usually grows around 60cm tall, occasionally to 120cm[].
The plant is widely used as a medicinal herb, being harvested from the wild in Africa, the warmer regions of Asia and also in S. America. It is sometimes also cultivated for medicinal use[].

Known Hazards

None known

Botanical References

, ,

Range

Probably originally native to tropical and subtropical regions of Africa and Asia, it is widely naturalized in warm temperate to tropical regions

Habitat

Forest shade; at elevations from 1,700 - 2,000 metres in Kashmir[]. In open, waste places, roadsides, fallow fields, young secondary forest, tea and coffee plantations; mainly at low elevations, sometimes ascending to 2,100 metres[, ].

Properties

Weed Potential	Yes
Edibility Rating
Medicinal Rating
Other Uses Rating
Habit	Annual
Height	0.60 m
Pollinators	Insects
Cultivation Status	Cultivated, Wild

Cultivation Details

Sigesbeckia orientalis is found wild from the warm temperate to the tropical zone, growing best where the temperature is within the range 10 - 27°c during the growing season. It is not usually found in drier areas[].
It has been cultivated on both heavy and sandy soils, preferring moist, fertile but well-drained conditions and a sunny position[].
The plant has spread as a weed and is considered to be invasive in several areas, including several of the Pacific Islands.
The plant has an unpleasant aroma[]. The plant is said to smell like a pig and have an acrid, bitter taste[].
Under favourable growing conditions two life cycles of Sigesbeckia orientalis can be grown in the same year[].
The plant can flower throughout the year in warm climates, but has its peak during the rainy season[].
Proliferation of the flowers can occur under humid conditions[].

Edible Uses

Young leaves - cooked[, ]. Boiling the leaves removes the bad odour and taste and produces a mucilaginous pot-herb[]. The leaves need to be leeched in order to remove a toxin[].

Medicinal

Sigesbeckia orientalis is a wide-ranging plant that is used medicinally in many of the regions in which it grows and is sometimes cultivated for medicinal use. The whole plant is considered to be alterative, anodyne, anthelmintic, antiphlogistic, cardiac, diuretic, febrifuge, salve, sialagogue, stimulates blood circulation[, , , , ].

Leaf extracts are widely used for restoring blood circulation; stimulating urine secretion; as a renal tonic; a stomachic; cardiotonic; to facilitate menstruation (as a pain reliever); for treating conditions such as diarrhoea, leucorrhoea etc., and to cure snake, insect or dog bites[]. In China leaf extracts are also used to treat convulsions, strokes, paralysis, arthritis and neuralgic pains[]. A decoction of the plant is used in the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis, pains and aches in the legs and sides, hemiplegia, hypertension, sciatica, weeping dermatitis and mastitis[, ].
A decoction of the dried leaves and flowers is used in the treatment of dysentery[].
A paste of the plant is applied to wounds between the toes that have been caused by prolonged walking barefoot in muddy water[].

The sap is commonly used externally in the treatment of conditions such as gangrenous ulcers and sores; skin lesions of leprosy; syphilis and other venereal diseases; and as a remedy for ringworm and parasitic infections. The fresh sap leaves a varnish-like covering on the skin when it dries[, , ].

A decoction of the stem is used to treat constipation in children[].

A paste of the root is used in the treatment of indigestion[].
The juice of the root is applied to wounds[].

The aerial parts of the plant contain various medicinally active compounds including an essential oil, diterpenes, sesquiterpenes and a bitter glucoside[].
In trials, extracts of the aerial parts have shown some hypoglycaemic activity; some hypotensive activity; some antispasmodic activity; and weak action against Rhaniket disease[].
The aqueous extract of the dried aerial parts do not show any analgesic activity when given intraperitoneally to mice at a dose of 9 g/kg, but shows a weak inhibitory effect on angiotensin II and cholecystokinin receptor binding.
A 95% ethanolic extract of the dried aerial parts shows significant bactericidal activity against Trypanosoma cruzi[]
An ethanol or aqueous extract of the dried aerial parts shows anti-hepatotoxic activity[]
Toxicity assessment of the whole plant in mice shows a maximum tolerated dose of 1 g/kg intraperitoneally[]

Other Uses

A fatty oil is obtained from the seed[310. It contains about 20% epoxy acids (16% coronary-epoxyacid, 4% vernolic-epoxyacid), these are of potential interest as replacements for synthetic epoxy compounds, used as stabilizers for plastic materials[].

The aerial parts contain an essential oil, that has been recommended for use in perfumery[].

An extract of the plant has shown significant antifeedant and insecticidal properties on the larvae of Crocidolomia binotalis, an important pest on cruciferous crops in Mauritius[].

An extract of the leaves is used as an ingredient in skin conditioners and tonics[].

Propagation

Seed - sow in situ

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