Species: Alternanthera philoxeroides
English Name: Alligator-weed
Chinese Name: 空心蓮子草、水花生
Family: Amaranthaceae
Description:
Herbs perennial. Stem ascending from a creeping base, 55-120 cm, branched; young stem and leaf axil white hairy; old ones glabrous. Petiole 3-10 mm, glabrous or slightly hairy; leaf blade oblong, oblong-obovate, or ovate-lanceolate, 2.5-5 × 0.7-2 cm, glabrous or ciliate, adaxially muricate, base attenuate, margin entire, apex acute or obtuse, with a mucro. Heads with a peduncle, solitary at leaf axil, globose, 0.8-1.5 cm in diam. Bracts and bracteoles white, 1-veined, apex acuminate; bracts ovate, 2-2.5 mm; bracteoles lanceolate, ca. 2 mm. Tepals white, shiny, oblong, 5-6 mm, glabrous, apex acute. Filaments 2.5-3 mm, connate into a cup at base; pseudostaminodes oblong-linear, ca. as long as stamens. Ovary obovoid, compressed, with short stalk. Fruit not known. Fl. May-Oct. 2n = 100*.
Photos used under a Creative Commons license
References:
– Wu ZY, Raven PH, Hong DY (eds) (2003). Flora of China, Volume 5: Ulmaceae through Basellaceae. Science Press, Beijing, and Missouri Bot Garden Press, St. Louis