Alternanthera pungens
Alternanthera pungens
Safety & Hazards
A weed of pastures, the plant is suspected of causing the deaths of pigs and digestive disturbances and dermatitis of cattle[1].
Cultivation Details
The plant has escaped from cultivation and become a weed in many areas. It colonises bare ground and disturbed areas usually forming a dense mat, particularly around houses, lawns, camp sites, stockyards or overgrazed areas. It is known to invade native pastures and out-compete more desirable species - its large taproot makes control difficult[1]. Burrs carrying the seeds are spread when they become attached to clothing, footwear, swags, tyres, machinery and animals. Water will also spread the burrs short distances and some spread has been recorded by the movement of fodder. Populations can expand by means of roots forming at the nodes and by fragmentation[1].
Propagation
Seed - Cite as: Tropical Plants Database, Ken Fern. tropical.theferns.info. 2026-02-19. <tropical.theferns.info/viewtropical.php?id=Alternanthera+pungens>
Pollinators
Data unavailable
References
- [1]Pacific Island Ecosystems at Risk — http://www.hear.org/pier/scientificnames/index.html ↩︎A very good website detailing weed species that have been introduced into the Pacific Islands.
- [2]Flora of China — Missouri Botanical Garden Press; St. Louis. · 1994 · http://flora.huh.harvard.edu/china/ ↩︎An excellent, comprehensive resource in 25 volumes. In addition to the botanical information the flora also gives basic information on habitat and some uses. An on-line version is also available.
- [3]Plant Resources of Southeast Asia — http://proseanet.org/ ↩︎Lots of information on the uses of the plants of SE Asia.