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Hydrocotyle vulgaris L.

Marsh pennywort (en), Hydrocotyle vulgaire (fr), Herbe aux Patagons (fr), Hydrocotyle commune (fr), Écuelle d'eau (fr), Herbe aux patagons (fr)

Species

Angiosperms > Apiales > Araliaceae > Hydrocotyle

Characteristics

Stems thin, creeping. Petioles 1-17 cm, with spreading hairs to the apex; lamina ¾-3½ cm through, orbicular, peltate, 8-13-nerved, coarsely crenate to slightly lobed. Inflorescences solitary or few together on the nodes; peduncles ½-14 cm, filiformous; with 1-10 whorls of flowers, each flower with an ovate membranous, acute bract. Petals nearly ¾ mm, ovate, white or reddish. Fruits smooth, 1½-2 by 1¾-2½ mm, transversely elliptical.
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A slender creeping herb. It has a thin trailing stem which forms roots along it. It is 10-40 cm long. The leaves are hairy underneath. They are 0.8-4 cm across. The leaf stalk joins the leaf blade in the centre of the leaf. The flowers are small. They are white or pink and on long stalks. The fruit are rounded and 2 mm across. They are ridged.
Life form perennial
Growth form herb
Growth support aquatic
Foliage retention
Sexuality hermaphrodite
Pollination
Spread hydrochory
Mature width (meter) 0.3 - 0.5
Mature height (meter) 0.1
Root system creeping-root
Rooting depth (meter) -
Root diameter (meter) -
Flower color
Blooming months
JanFebMar
AprMayJun
JulAugSep
OctNovDec
Fruit color -
Fruiting months -
Nitrogen fixer -
Photosynthetic pathway c3

Environment

It is a temperate plant. It grows well along the edges of ponds.
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Bogs, fens and marshes, usually on acid soils.
In open marshes, ± 2000 m.
Light 4-9
Soil humidity 5-9
Soil texture 1-6
Soil acidity 2-8
Soil nutriment -
Hardiness (USDA) 6-8

Usage

Uses medicinal
Edible leaves
Therapeutic use Depurative (unspecified), Vulnerary (unspecified), Poison (unspecified), Purgative (unspecified), Sudorific (unspecified), Cancer (unspecified), Diuretic (unspecified)
Human toxicity -
Animal toxicity -

Cultivation

Can be grown by divisions or seedlings.
Mode divisions seedlings
Germination duration (days) -
Germination temperacture (C°) -
Germination luminosity -
Germination treatment -
Minimum temperature (C°) -
Optimum temperature (C°) -
Size -
Vigor -
Productivity -

Images

Habit

Hydrocotyle vulgaris habit picture by Gaël Covain (cc-by-sa)
Hydrocotyle vulgaris habit picture by Uxeli (cc-by-sa)
Hydrocotyle vulgaris habit picture by Uxeli (cc-by-sa)

Leaf

Hydrocotyle vulgaris leaf picture by Jean-Louis Labarbe (cc-by-sa)
Hydrocotyle vulgaris leaf picture by Hugo Palma (cc-by-sa)
Hydrocotyle vulgaris leaf picture by Tim Burton (cc-by-sa)

Flower

Hydrocotyle vulgaris flower picture by Groupe Botanique de Bruxelles (cc-by-sa)
Hydrocotyle vulgaris flower picture by Baltink Henk-Jan (cc-by-sa)
Hydrocotyle vulgaris flower picture by Jean-Marie (cc-by-sa)

Distribution

Hydrocotyle vulgaris world distribution map, present in Albania, Australia, Austria, Belarus, Switzerland, Czech Republic, Germany, Denmark, Algeria, Spain, France, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Iran (Islamic Republic of), Italy, Morocco, Marshall Islands, Malaysia, Netherlands, Norway, Palau, Papua New Guinea, Poland, Portugal, Sweden, and South Africa

Conservation status

Hydrocotyle vulgaris threat status: Least Concern

Identifiers

LSID urn:lsid:ipni.org:names:843768-1
WFO ID wfo-0000726631
COL ID 3N6T5
BDTFX ID 35096
INPN ID 103142
Wikipedia (EN) Link
Wikipedia (FR) Link

Synonyms

Hydrocotyle pleiantha Hydrocotyle schkuhriana Hydrocotyle vulgaris
WorldFloraDB 2024