Commelina benghalensis
Commelina benghalensis
Safety & Hazards
None known
Cultivation Details
A plant of warm temperate to tropical areas where it can be found at elevations up to 1,600 metres[1]. In Tanzania, it grows in areas where the mean annual rainfall is in the range 1,000 - 2,100mm[1]. Vegetation and flower growth are optimal between 30 - 35°c, but it grows well between 20 - 40°c[2]. Prefers a sunny position. Thrives in sandy loams, but can tolerate a wide range of soil types[1]. Established plants can withstand prolonged drought[1]. The plant is listed as one of the world's worst weeds, affecting 25 crops in 29 countries[2]. Pieces of the cut stems, usually cut during physical eradication or cultivation, have the ability to survive a short period of drought stress and resprout[2]. The plant often has subterranean cleistogamous flowers[3]. Not many seeds are produced by them, but they have a very high percentage fertility[3].
Propagation
Seed - Stem cuttings Root cuttings Cite as: Tropical Plants Database, Ken Fern. tropical.theferns.info. 2026-02-20. <tropical.theferns.info/viewtropical.php?id=Commelina+benghalensis>
Pollinators
Bees, Self
References
- [1]Edible Wild Plants of Tanzania — Ruffo, C.K.: Birnie, A. & Tengnas, B. · Regional Land Management Unit; Nairobi. · 2002 · ISBN 9966-896-60-0 ↩︎A very well presented, simple guide to growing and utilizing wild food plants in Tanzania, with line drawings of each plant, a description, habitat and range, non-food as well as food uses, plus basic information on growing the plants.
- [2]Global Invasive Species Database — http://www.issg.org/database/welcome/ ↩︎Very detailed information on almost 400 species (with more being added) of plants that have become weeds in areas outside their native range.
- [3]Protabase - Plant Resources of Tropical Africa. — http://www.prota.org ↩︎An excellent on-line database with detailed information on over 3,200 species of useful plants of Africa.
- [4]The Useful Plants of the Island of Guam — Safford W.E. · Smithsonian Institute; Washington. · 1905 · http://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/ ↩︎A very comprehensive, if rather dated, guide to the plants of Guam. It can be downloaded from the Internet.
- [5]Plant Resources of Southeast Asia — http://proseanet.org/ ↩︎Lots of information on the uses of the plants of SE Asia.
- [6]Wild edible plants traditionally used by the tribes in the Parambikulam Wildlife Sanctuary, Keala, India — Yesodharan K. & Sujana K.A. · 2007 ↩︎
- [7]Traditional Vegetables in Benin — Achigan-Dako E. Et al · Darwin Initiative; International Foundation for Science · 2009 ↩︎Issued as a PDF on the Internet, it contains basic information on over 250 species of plants used for food in Benin.