| Menu list goes here |
Herbal Database Search Results
Back
to: Pathways Main Search
Page For Metaphysical uses
visit The Witchs Haven
Impatiens balsamina
| Common name: |
Rose Balsam |
Family: |
Balsaminaceae |
| Author: |
L. |
Botanical references: |
200 |
| Synonyms: |
|
| Known Hazards: |
Regular ingestion of large quantities of these plants can be dangerous due to their high mineral content[172]. This report, which seems nonsensical, might refer to calcium oxalate. This mineral is found in I. capensis and so is probably also in other members of the genus. It can be harmful raw but is destroyed by thoroughly cooking or drying the plant[K]. People with a tendency to rheumatism, arthritis, gout, kidney stones and hyperacidity should take especial caution if including this plant in their diet[238]. |
| Range: |
E. Asia - China, India, Malaya. |
| Habitat: |
Waste places in and around villages[260]. |
| Edibility Rating (1-5): |
2 | Medicinal Rating (1-5): | 2 |
| Other Possible Synonyms: | From various places across the web, may not be correct. See below. |
| Balsamina foemina[G]
|
| Other Common Names: | From various places around the Web, may not be correct. See below. |
| Beijo De Frade [E], Belle Zamie [E], Common Balsam [H], Feng Hsien [E], Garden Balsam [H], Garden-balsam [B], Hosen-Ka [E], Ji Xing Zi [E], Kina Cicegi [E], Spotted Snapweed [P], |
| Systematics: | From a USDA
Plants Database |
|
Order: Geraniales. Touch-me-not family
|
| Other Range Info: |
From the Ethnobotany Database |
|
Brazil; Ca; China; Haiti; Hawaii; Philippines; Turkey; Us
|
Physical Characteristics
Annual growing to 0.6m by 0.5m . It is frost tender. The flowers are hermaphrodite (have both male and female organs) and are pollinated by Insects.
We rate it 2/5 for edibility and
2/5 for medicinal use.
The plant prefers light (sandy), medium (loamy) and heavy (clay) soils and can grow in heavy clay soil.
The plant prefers acid, neutral and basic (alkaline) soils.
It can grow in semi-shade (light woodland) or no shade.
It requires moist soil.
Habitats and Possible Locations
Cultivated Beds.Edible Uses
Leaves; Seed.
Leaves and young shoots - cooked[177, 179].
Seed - raw or cooked[177]. They are difficult to collect in quantity, mainly
because of their exploding seed capsules which scatter the ripe seed at the
slightest touch[K].
Medicinal Uses
Disclaimer
Antibiotic; Cancer; Cathartic; Diuretic; Emetic; Expectorant; Poultice; Tonic; Warts.
The plant is cathartic, diuretic and emetic[240]. It is used in the
treatment of pains in the joints[240]. The leaf juice is used as a treatment
against warts[218].
The flowers are cooling, mucilaginous and tonic[240, 272]. They are useful
when applied to burns and scalds[240]. The juice of the flowers is used to
treat snakebites[272]. The flowers, and their alcoholic extract, possess
marked antibiotic activity against some pathogenic fungi and bacteria[240].
The seed is expectorant and has been used in the treatment of cancer[218].
The powdered seeds are given to women during labour in order to provide
strength[272].
Other Uses
Dye; Oil.
A dye is obtained from the plant[51, 178]. The prepared juice has been
used for dyeing fingers and toenails red[4].
The seed contains 27% of a viscous oil, though the report does not mention
if this oil is utilised for any purpose[240].
Cultivation details
Succeeds in any reasonably good soil[1]. Grows well in heavy clay
soils. Prefers a moist well-drained humus rich soil in a cool site[200].
Another report says that this species requires warm, moist conditions[260].
Succeeds in sun or semi-shade[188].
Plants are not frost hardy, but can be grown outdoors in Britain by sowing
the seed in a greenhouse and planting out after the last expected frosts.
A polymorphic species[1], there are several named forms selected for their
ornamental value[200].
This plant has seed capsules that spring open forcibly as the seed ripens to
eject the seed a considerable distance. The capsules are sensitive to touch
even before the seed is ripe, making seed collection difficult but fun[K].
Propagation
Seed - sow spring in a greenhouse. When they are large enough to
handle, prick the seedlings out into individual pots and plant them out in
the summer.
Cultivars
- ''
- There are some named forms for this species, but these have been developed for their ornamental value and not for their other uses. Unless you particularly require the special characteristics of any of these cultivars, we would generally recommend that you grow the natural species for its useful properties. We have, therefore, not listed the cultivars in this database[K].
Suppliers
For more details of plant suppliers please see our Suppliers Page which lists many more places to look.
Web References
- Details of Medicinal Uses, Habitats, etc. in M. Grieve A Modern Herbal (1931) [4]
- [H] Details of Scandanavian and European Common names in Henriette's names database
- [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.
- [G] Data
(Common Names, Uses, Distribution) from the USDA/ARS NPGS's GRIN taxonomic database.
- [P] Data.
(uses, distribution, wetland) from the USDA'a Plants database.
- [HP] Links, Photos, Suppliers from Hortiplex Plant Database
References for the family Balsaminaceae.
See the PFAF Links Pages for other sources.
Also try Photos and info from the The Plants Database which has 14,000 images.
[K] Ken Fern
Notes from observations, tasting etc at Plants For A Future and on field trips.
[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]).
[4] Grieve. A Modern Herbal. Penguin 1984 ISBN 0-14-046-440-9
Not so modern (1930's?) but lots of information, mainly temperate plants.
[51] Polunin. O. and Stainton. A. Flowers of the Himalayas. Oxford Universtiy Press 1984
A very readable and good pocket guide (if you have a very large pocket!) to many of the wild plants in the Himalayas. Gives many examples of plant uses.
[172] Schofield. J. J. Discovering Wild Plants - Alaska, W. Canada and the Northwest.
A nice guide to some useful plants in that area.
[177] Kunkel. G. Plants for Human Consumption. 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.
[178] Stuart. Rev. G. A. Chinese Materia Medica. Taipei. Southern Materials Centre
A translation of an ancient Chinese herbal. Fascinating.
[179] Reid. B. E. Famine Foods of the Chiu-Huang Pen-ts'ao. Taipei. Southern Materials Centre 1977
A translation of an ancient Chinese book on edible wild foods. Fascinating.
[188] Brickell. C. The RHS Gardener's Encyclopedia of Plants and Flowers Dorling Kindersley Publishers Ltd. 1990 ISBN 0-86318-386-7
Excellent range of photographs, some cultivation details but very little information on plant uses.
[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.
[238] Bown. D. Encyclopaedia of Herbs and their Uses. Dorling Kindersley, London. 1995 ISBN 0-7513-020-31
A very well presented and informative book on herbs from around the globe. Plenty in it for both the casual reader and the serious student. Just one main quibble is the silly way of having two separate entries for each plant.
[240] Chopra. R. N., Nayar. S. L. and Chopra. I. C. Glossary of Indian Medicinal Plants (Including the Supplement). Council of Scientific and Industrial Research, New Delhi. 1986
Very terse details of medicinal uses of plants with a wide range of references and details of research into the plants chemistry. Not for the casual reader.
[260] Phillips. R. & Rix. M. Conservatory and Indoor Plants Volumes 1 & 2 Pan Books, London. 1998 ISBN 0-330-37376-5
Excellent photos of over 1,100 species and cultivars with habits and cultivation details plus a few plant uses. Many species are too tender for outdoors in Britain though there are many that can be grown outside.
Readers Comments
Main Search Page
Bibliography
Plant information taken from the
Plants For A Future -
Species Database.
Copyright (c) 1997-2003.
WEB search engine by Rich Morris - Home Page- Contact Info
Blagdon Cross, Ashwater, Beaworthy, Devon, EX21 5DF, UK.
Website: www.pfaf.org Phone: 0845 458 4719/_44(0) 1208 872963 This page (UK) http://www.comp.leeds.ac.uk/cgi-bin/pfaf/arr_html?Impatiens+balsamina
This page (US) http://www.ibiblio.org/pfaf/cgi-bin/arr_html?Impatiens+balsamina
|
This work is licensed under a
Creative Commons License.
(You can copy, distribute, display this works but: Attribution is required, its for Non-Commercial purposes, and it's Share Alike (GNUish/copyleft) i.e. has an identical license.)
We also ask that you let us know (michael@thewitchshaven.com) if
you link to, redistribute, make a derived work or do anything groovy with this information.
|
|
