Portulacaceae FAMILY

Talinum paniculatum

Edibility

3/5

Medicinal

2/5

Safety & Hazards

None known

Botanical Description

Talinum paniculatum is an erect, herbaceous, perennial plant producing mainly unbranched stems up to 1 metre tall from a tuberous rootstock[ 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 stems sometimes become softly woody. The plant is sometimes harvested from the wild for its edible leaves, which are used locally. The plant is also cultivated in tropical W Africa, Cuba and SE Asia as a vegetable, in Thailand for its medicinal uses and in various parts of the tropics as an ornamental[ 317 Title Mansfeld's Database of Agricultural and Horticultural Plants Publication Author Website http://mansfeld.ipk-gatersleben.de/pls/htmldb_pgrc/f?p=185:3:4292127278597336 Publisher Year 0 ISBN Description Terse details of a huge range of useful plants. ].

Habitat & Origin

Origintropical

Native RangeS. America - Brazil, Bolivia, Peru, Venezuela, the Guyanas; Caribbean; C. America - Panama to Mexico, southern N. America.

HabitatMoist or wet fields or thickets, often in waste ground, sometimes in cultivated fields; usually at low elevations, but ascending to 2,400 metres[ 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/ ].