Food Plants International - Plant Fact Sheets Trigastrotheca pentaphylla

Edible: Leaves, Vegetable, Flowers

A small annual herb. It lies along the ground or curves upwards. It is 10-20 cm high. The stems are 4 angled and branch from near the base. The leaves are wedge shaped and thick and fleshy. They can be arranged alternately, oppositely or in rings or whorls. The lower leaves have stalks while the upper leaves do not have stalks. The flowers are small but in large arrangements. These develop in the axils of leaves. The fruit is a capsule which splits open.

A tropical plant. It grows in open sandy places. In Papua New Guinea it grows from sea level to 1,000 m altitude. It grows up to 2,300 m in the Himalayas.

Common Names: Five-leaved carpetweed, Binhcu,Bunga karang, Galingsa, Jharasa, Jharasi, Julpapra, Khet-papara, Marakata, Myetpan, Paepadakam, Parpadakapullu, Pirigarundi, Pita-gohun, Rumput belangkas, Rumput burong, Soi nok kao, Tapak burong, Vahmim bung, Va-umim-bung, Verrichatarasi, Ya nok kao

Synonyms: 

Mollugo pentaphylla L.;
Mollugo stricta Linn.;
Mollugo trifolia Schult.;
Pharnaceum pentaphyllum (L.) Spreng.;
Pharnaceum triphyllum Spreng.;