Turnera ulmifolia
L.
Passifloraceae
Turnera alba Liebm.
Turnera angustifolia Mill.
Turnera caerulea DC.
Turnera mollis Kunth
Turnera peruviana Willd. ex Roem. & Schult.
Turnera trioniflora Sims
Turnera velutina C.Presl
Common Name: Ramgoat Dashalong
Flowering plant, growing in a crack in a wall.
Photograph by: Patrice78500
Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0
Close-up of a flower
Photograph by: Patrice78500
Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0
General Information
Turnera ulmifolia is an erect perennial plant with stems that can become woody. It usually grows up to 75cm tall[
331- Title
- Flora of Guatemala
- Publication
-
- Author
- Standley P.C. & J. A. Steyermark
- Website
- http://www.archive.org/
- Publisher
-
- Year
- 1946 - 1976
- ISBN
-
- Description
- A superb reference, though somewhat dated. Gives lots of plant uses as well as information on plant habit and habitat. The entire flora (13 volumes) can now be downloaded from http://www.archive.org/
].
The plant is gathered from the wild for local used as a tea and medicine. It is sometimes cultivated for its medicinal uses[
].
Turnera ulmifolia has a very wide distribution, large population, is not currently experiencing any major threats and no significant future threats have been identified. The plant is classified as 'Least Concern' in the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species(2021)[
338- Title
- IUCN Red List of Threatened Species
- Publication
-
- Author
-
- Website
- http://www.iucnredlist.org/
- Publisher
-
- Year
- 0
- ISBN
-
- Description
- A list of plants under threat and facing possible extinction, usually with brief details of the threats and information on habitat.
].
Known Hazards
None known
Botanical References
331- Title
- Flora of Guatemala
- Publication
-
- Author
- Standley P.C. & J. A. Steyermark
- Website
- http://www.archive.org/
- Publisher
-
- Year
- 1946 - 1976
- ISBN
-
- Description
- A superb reference, though somewhat dated. Gives lots of plant uses as well as information on plant habit and habitat. The entire flora (13 volumes) can now be downloaded from http://www.archive.org/
Range
S. America - Brazil, Bolivia, to Venezuela; Caribbean - Trinidad to the Bahamas; C. America - Panama to Mexico; southeast N. America - Florida.
Habitat
Savannahs or stony fields or hillsides, often on open banks, or as a weed in waste ground, sometimes on limestone, at elevations up to 1,200 metres in Guatemala[
331- Title
- Flora of Guatemala
- Publication
-
- Author
- Standley P.C. & J. A. Steyermark
- Website
- http://www.archive.org/
- Publisher
-
- Year
- 1946 - 1976
- ISBN
-
- Description
- A superb reference, though somewhat dated. Gives lots of plant uses as well as information on plant habit and habitat. The entire flora (13 volumes) can now be downloaded from http://www.archive.org/
].
Properties
| Weed Potential | Yes |
| Conservation Status | Least Concern |
| Edibility Rating |  |
| Medicinal Rating |  |
| Habit | Perennial |
| Height | 0.75 m |
| Cultivation Status | Cultivated, Ornamental, Wild |
Cultivation Details
The plant is widely cultivated as an ornamental in the tropics, where it often escapes from cultivation. It is reported to be invasive in several Pacific Islands[
].
Plants can become rather leggy if they are not pruned back regularly[
372- Title
- Flowers of India
- Publication
-
- Author
-
- Website
- http://www.flowersofindia.net/
- Publisher
-
- Year
- 0
- ISBN
-
- Description
- A wed site of native Indian plants, plus cultivated and naturalized species. It has good quality photos and terse details on more than 3,000 species and cultivars.
].
Plants flower and fruit all year round[
426- Title
- Flowering Plants of Jamaica
- Publication
-
- Author
- Adams. C.D.
- Publisher
- University of the West Indies; Jamaica.
- Year
- 1972
- ISBN
-
- Description
- A terse treatment of the flowering plants of Jamaica, with a botanical description of each plant, notes on habitat etc.
].
Edible Uses
The dried leaves are used as a tea substitute or as a flavouring[
301- Title
- Cornucopia II
- Publication
-
- Author
- Facciola. S.
- Publisher
- Kampong Publications, California.
- Year
- 1998
- ISBN
- 0-9628087-2-5
- Description
- The second edition of an excellent guide to the edible uses of plants, though it does not give any details of cultivation etc.
].
Medicinal
The plant has medicinal uses[
].
The leaves are used for treating hair loss and thrush[
348- Title
- Medicinal Plants of the Guianas
- Publication
-
- Author
- DeFilipps, R. A.; Maina, S. L.; & Crepin, J.
- Website
- http://botany.si.edu/bdg/medicinal/index.html
- Publisher
- Smithsonian Museum
- Year
- 0
- ISBN
-
- Description
- A down-loadable PDF document of a book in pre-publication awaiting illustration. An excellent, if rather terse, guide to the traditional medicinal uses of the plants of the region
].
Other Uses
None known
Propagation
Seed -
Cuttings
Division
If you have any useful information about this plant, please leave a comment. Comments have to be approved before they are shown here.
Useful Tropical Plants Database 2014 by
Ken Fern,
web interface by
Ajna Fern
with help from
Richard Morris.
