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Boerhavia diffusa
Also called Spreading Hogweed, Red Hogweed, Wineflower, Tarvine
Boerhavia diffusa is a sprawling, low-growing perennial herb in the four o'clock family, grown widely as a medicinal plant and leafy vegetable in India. It thrives in hot, dry conditions and spreads easily, so it is best kept in check in the garden.
Boerhavia diffusa is a species of flowering plant in the four o'clock family, called red spiderling, spreading hogweed, or tarvine. It is taken in herbal medicine for pain relief and other uses. The leaves of Boerhavia diffusa are often used as a green vegetable in many parts of India.
Boerhavia G and Boerhavia H are two rotenoids isolated from B. diffusa. A quinolone alkaloid, lunamarine, isolated from B. diffusa has shown some in vitro anticancer, antiestrogenic, immunomodulatory, and anti-amoebic activity (particularly against Entamoeba histolytica).
The plant contains a protein called BDP-30, presumably a ribosome-inactivating protein.
A true and accurate accounting of the native range of Boerhavia diffusa has not been determined. However, it is very widespread, and has become naturalized in many places. It is believed to be a native plant to the following places in:
Text excerpted from the Wikipedia article Boerhavia diffusa by its contributors, under CC BY-SA 4.0; the excerpts and the care summary drawn from them are shared under the same licence.
The care summary was written by AI (Claude, Anthropic) from the sources on this page, with general growing knowledge where they are silent. Check before relying on it.
Life form, climate and native range: World Checklist of Vascular Plants, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew (CC BY 3.0), reformatted; see Plants of the World Online.
