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Hydrocotyle sibthorpioides

Common name:	Water Pennywort	Family:	Umbelliferae
Author:	Lam.	Botanical references:	58, 200
Synonyms:	Hydrocotyle rotundifolia (Roxb.), Hydrocotyle puncticulata, Hydrocotyle latisecta, Hydrocotyle hirsuta (Sw.)
Known Hazards:	None known
Range:	E. Asia - Japan.
Habitat:	Shady places in lowland areas of C. and S. Japan[58].
Edibility Rating (1-5):	1	Medicinal Rating (1-5):	2

Other Possible Synonyms:	From various places across the web, may not be correct. See below.
	H. sibtorpioides[E]
Other Common Names:	From various places around the Web, may not be correct. See below.
	Lawn Marsh-pennywort [B], Lawn Marshpennywort [P], Pegaga Embun [E], Tian Hu Sui [E], Tikim [E], Ulam Gunong [E], Yerba De Clavo [P], Yerba-de-clavo [B],
Systematics:	From a USDA Plants Database
	Order: Apiales. Renamed to Apiaceae -- Carrot family
Other Range Info:	From the Ethnobotany Database
	China India Indochina Java Malaya

Physical Characteristics

Perennial growing to 0.1m by 0.3m . It is hardy to zone 6. The flowers are hermaphrodite (have both male and female organs) and are pollinated by Insects. The plant is self-fertile. We rate it 1/5 for edibility and 2/5 for medicinal use.

The plant prefers light (sandy), medium (loamy) and heavy (clay) soils. The plant prefers acid, neutral and basic (alkaline) soils. It can grow in semi-shade (light woodland) or no shade. It requires moist or wet soil.

Habitats and Possible Locations

Lawn, Bog Garden.

Edible Uses

Leaves.

The whole plant is eaten raw or cooked as a potherb[61, 105, 183]. It has a parsley-like aroma[183].

Medicinal Uses

Disclaimer

Depurative Febrifuge.

Depurative, febrifuge. Resolves mucus formation[147]. The juice of the plant is used in the treatment of fevers[272]. A paste made from the plant is applied externally to wounds and boils[272].
The plant is decocted and used in the treatment of abscesses, boils, bruises, cirrhosis, colds, coughs, hepatitis, hepatoma, influenza, itch, jaundice, sinusitis and sore throat[218]. It is a Chinese herbal drug for hepatoma[218].

Other Uses

None known

Cultivation details

Requires a permanently moist position in sun or light shade[200].
Plants are occasionally found as weeds in damp lawns[1].

Propagation

Seed - we have no information on this species but suggest sowing it in early spring in a cold frame. When they are large enough to handle, prick the seedlings out into individual pots and grow them on in the greenhouse for their first winter. Plant them out into their permanent positions in late spring or early summer, after the last expected frosts.
Division of rooted runners. Probably best done in spring but can be done at any time in the growing season if the plants are kept moist.

Suppliers

For more details of plant suppliers please see our Suppliers Page which lists many more places to look.

Web References

[E] Ethnobotany Data (common names, uses, countries) from the Ethnobotany Database.
[B] Data (Latin & Common names, other references) from the BONAP's Synonymized Checklist of the Vascular Flora of the United States, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands.
[G] Data (Common Names, Uses, Distribution) from the USDA/ARS NPGS's GRIN taxonomic database.
[C] Taxon data. from the CalFlora database.
[P] Data. (uses, distribution, wetland) from the USDA'a Plants database.
[HP] Links, Photos, Suppliers from Hortiplex Plant Database

References for Hydrocotyle hirsuta (a possible synonym).

[B] Data (Latin & Common names, other references) from the BONAP's Synonymized Checklist of the Vascular Flora of the United States, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands.
[P] Data. (uses, distribution, wetland) from the USDA'a Plants database.

References for Hydrocotyle rotundifolia (a possible synonym).

[E] Ethnobotany Data (common names, uses, countries) from the Ethnobotany Database.

References for Hydrocotyle sibtorpioides (a possible synonym).

[E] Ethnobotany Data (common names, uses, countries) from the Ethnobotany Database.

See the PFAF Links Pages for other sources.

Also try Photos and info from the The Plants Database which has 14,000 images.

References

[1] F. Chittendon. RHS Dictionary of Plants plus Supplement. 1956 Oxford University Press 1951
Comprehensive listing of species and how to grow them. Somewhat outdated, it has been replaces in 1992 by a new dictionary (see [200]).

[58] Ohwi. G. Flora of Japan. (English translation) Smithsonian Institution 1965
The standard work. Brilliant, but not for the casual reader.

[61] Usher. G. A Dictionary of Plants Used by Man. Constable 1974 ISBN 0094579202
Forget the sexist title, this is one of the best books on the subject. Lists a very extensive range of useful plants from around the world with very brief details of the uses. Not for the casual reader.

[105] Tanaka. T. Tanaka's Cyclopaedia of Edible Plants of the World. Keigaku Publishing 1976
The most comprehensive guide to edible plants I've come across. Only the briefest entry for each species, though, and some of the entries are more than a little dubious. Not for the casual reader.

[147] ? A Barefoot Doctors Manual. Running Press ISBN 0-914294-92-X
A very readable herbal from China, combining some modern methods with traditional chinese methods.

[183] Facciola. S. Cornucopia - A Source Book of Edible Plants. 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.

[200] Huxley. A. The New RHS Dictionary of Gardening. 1992. MacMillan Press 1992 ISBN 0-333-47494-5
Excellent and very comprehensive, though it contains a number of silly mistakes. Readable yet also very detailed.

[218] Duke. J. A. and Ayensu. E. S. Medicinal Plants of China 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.

Readers Comments

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Plant information taken from the Plants For A Future - Species Database. Copyright (c) 1997-2003.
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