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Paederia foetida
Rubiaceae FAMILY

Paederia foetida

Paederia foetida

Edibility
2/5
Medicinal
4/5

Safety & Hazards

None known

Cultivation Details

HabitDeciduous Climber
GrowthFast

Paederia foetida is found in a range of environments from the warm temperate zone to the tropics. It is tolerant of at least some frost[1]. Succeeds in any fertile soil so long as it is well drained[2, 3]. Plants have a wide ranging adaptability to different levels of light, types of soil, and salt conditions[1]. Requires a sunny sheltered position[3]. A very variable plant[4]. The plant has escaped from cultivation and become naturalised in many areas[5]. It has become a serious weed of young sugarcane[6]. The vines climb over shrubs and trees, weighing them down and impeding regeneration[1]. They also invade pastureland and are troublesome along roads and on power lines[1]. The seeds may be dispersed by birds and the plant is also spread by the transport of rooted fragments[1]. The plant can be found flowering and fruiting throughout the year in tropical and subtropical conditions; in other localities, it flowers during the rainy season, and fruits early in the dry season[5]. Individual flowers are short-lived, open early in the morning and fall off after 2 days; entire inflorescences, however, bear flowers for a long period of time[5].

Propagation

Seed - despite its weediness, the plant germinates rather slowly, with tetraploids germinating quicker than hexaploids, in 5 - 22 days, or in 17 - 24 days, respectively[5]. Layering. Sometimes, shoots produce adventitious roots when they come in contact with the soil, and can thus be propagated[5] Cuttings of half-ripe wood, mid summer in a frame. Cite as: Temperate Plants Database, Ken Fern. temperate.theferns.info. 2026-02-21. <temperate.theferns.info/plant/Paederia+foetida>

Pollinators

Bees, Butterflies

References

  1. [1]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.
  2. [2]Ornamental Shrubs, Climbers and Bamboos. — Thomas. G. S. · Murray · 1992 · ISBN 0-7195-5043-2 ↩︎Contains a wide range of plants with a brief description, mainly of their ornamental value but also usually of cultivation details and varieties.
  3. [3]Gardening on Walls — Grey-Wilson. C. & Matthews. V. · Collins · 1983 · ISBN 0-00-219220-0 ↩︎A nice little book about plants for growing against walls and a small section on plants that can grow in walls.
  4. [4]Flora of Japan. (English translation) — Ohwi. G. · Smithsonian Institution · 1965 · ISBN - ↩︎The standard work. Brilliant, but not for the casual reader.
  5. [5]Plant Resources of Southeast Asia — http://proseanet.org/ ↩︎Lots of information on the uses of the plants of SE Asia.
  6. [6]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.
  7. [7]Plants and People of Nepal — Manandhar. N. P. · Timber Press. Oregon. · 2002 · ISBN 0-88192-527-6 ↩︎Excellent book, covering over 1,500 species of useful plants from Nepal together with information on the geography and peoples of Nepal. Good descriptions of the plants with terse notes on their uses.
  8. [8]Cornucopia II — Facciola. S. · Kampong Publications, California. · 1998 · ISBN 0-9628087-2-5 ↩︎The second edition of an excellent guide to the edible uses of plants, though it does not give any details of cultivation etc.
  9. [9]Plants for Human Consumption. — Kunkel. G. · Koeltz Scientific Books · 1984 · ISBN 3874292169 ↩︎An excellent book for the dedicated. A comprehensive listing of Latin names with a brief list of edible parts.
  10. [10]Cornucopia - A Source Book of Edible Plants. — Facciola. S. · Kampong Publications · 1990 · ISBN 0-9628087-0-9 ↩︎Excellent. Contains a very wide range of conventional and unconventional food plants (including tropical) and where they can be obtained (mainly N. American nurseries but also research institutes and a lot of other nurseries from around the world.
  11. [11]Philippine Medicinal Plants — http://www.stuartxchange.org/CompleteList.html ↩︎A lovely site, giving brief details on the medicinal uses of several hundred (over 400 at the last count) plants in the Philippines, plus a picture of each plant.
  12. [12]A Barefoot Doctors Manual. — ? · Running Press; Philadelphica. · 1977 · ISBN 0-914294-92-X ↩︎A very readable herbal from China, combining some modern methods with traditional chinese methods.
  13. [13]Medicinal Plants of China — Duke. J. A. and Ayensu. E. S. · Reference Publications, Inc. · 1985 · ISBN 0-917256-20-4 ↩︎Details of over 1,200 medicinal plants of China and brief details of their uses. Often includes an analysis, or at least a list of constituents. Heavy going if you are not into the subject.
  14. [PFAF]Plants for a Future — pfaf.org ↩︎