Limnocharis flava is an emergent aquatic perennial in the Alismataceae, forming clumps about 50 cm tall with triangular leaves and three-lobed yellow flowers. It thrives in shallow, still or slow fresh water and wet, swampy ground.
Family
Alismataceae (Alismat family)
Grows as
Aquatic
Light
Full sun
Water
Keep roots submerged or constantly wet in shallow fresh water.
Soil
Wet, muddy or clay-rich soil, or shallow pond mud.
Temperature
Warm tropical conditions, about 20–30 °C; protect below 10 °C.
How easy
Easy
Edible
Yes, some parts
Native range
Mexico to Trop. America
Climate
wet tropical
About
Limnocharis flava (commonly known as yellow velvetleaf, sawah flower rush, sawah lettuce) is a species of aquatic flowering plant which is native to Mexico, Central America, South America, Cuba, Haiti and the Dominican Republic but widely naturalized in southern and southeastern Asia: India, Sri Lanka, Cambodia, Burma, Thailand, Vietnam, Indonesia, Malaysia, Brunei and southern China (Guangdong, Yunnan).
Limnocharis flava is roughly 50 centimetres (20 in) tall growing in clumps. Its triangular-shaped leaves and hollow stems are glabrous. Its inflorescences have a very characteristic shape, producing three-lobed yellow flowers about 1.5 cm in diameter. The fruits are spherical. Although it is not a floating plant, its seeds are carried away by currents.
Text excerpted from the Wikipedia article Limnocharis flava 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.