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Polygonum
Also called Knotgrasses, Knotgrass, Knotweeds
Polygonum is a genus of about 130 small herbaceous plants in the buckwheat family, mostly native to northern temperate regions, ranging from creeping annuals to upright perennials. Most are grown as wild or garden weeds and ground cover rather than for display, so cultivate them as easy, undemanding plants in moist soil.
Polygonum is a genus of about 130 species of flowering plants in the buckwheat and knotweed family Polygonaceae. Common names include knotweed and knotgrass (though the common names may refer more broadly to plants from Polygonaceae). In the Middle English glossary of herbs Alphita (c. 1400–1425), it was known as ars-smerte. There have been various opinions about how broadly the genus should be defined. For example, buckwheat (Fagopyrum esculentum) has sometimes been included in the genus as Polygonum fagopyrum. Former genera such as Polygonella have been subsumed into Polygonum; other genera have been split off.
The genus primarily grows in northern temperate regions. The species are very diverse, ranging from prostrate herbaceous annual plants to erect herbaceous perennial plants.
Several species can be eaten cooked, for example during famines. The species Polygonum cognatum, known locally as "madimak", is regularly consumed in central parts of Turkey.
European knotweed · Oval-leaf knotweed · Prostrate knotweed · Indian Knotgrass · Douglas' knotweed · Erect knotweed
Text excerpted from the Wikipedia article Polygonum 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.
