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Senna obtusifolia
Also called Arsenic weed, Blunt-leaved senna, Chinese senna, Coffeeweed, Foetid senna, Sickle senna, Sicklepod
Java-bean is a Senna species, usually grown as a fast-spreading annual or short-lived shrub, often treated as a weed in warm regions. It is best left in open ground or pasture rather than grown as an ornamental, and it is widely invasive.
Senna obtusifolia, known by common names including Chinese senna, American sicklepod and sicklepod, is a plant in the genus Senna, sometimes separated in the monotypic genus Diallobus. It grows wild in North, Central, and South America, Asia, Africa, and Oceania, and is considered a particularly problematic weed in many places. It has a long-standing history of confusion with Senna tora and that taxon in many sources actually refers to the present species.
In the traditional medicine of Eastern Asia, the seeds are called jué míng zǐ in Chinese (simplified: 决明子; traditional: 決明子), gyeolmyeongja in Korean, and ketsumeishi in Japanese.
Ingested in larger quantities, Senna obtusifolia is toxic to cattle, sheep and goats. It is not readily palatable due to its bitter taste but may be consumed by livestock when other pasture forage is lacking. The main clinical signs are diarrhea, reluctance to move, muscular weakness and recumbency. Brown urine may be observed due to the presence of myoglobin from muscle breakdown. Macroscopic necropsy findings consist of pale discoloration of skeletal muscles. Microscopically, affected cattle show degeneration and necrosis of the skeletal and occasionally cardiac muscles. Some animals may develop centrilobular hepatic necrosis. Seasonal variation in toxicity of the plant has been reported.
Senna obtusifolia naturally occurs in tropical and subtropical regions of the Americas, but has been introduced to Africa, parts of Europe, the Middle East, the Indian subcontinent, parts of Southeast Asia, New Guinea and parts of Australia. Its nativity in the North America disputed, but it is usually considered to be native to the Southeastern United States, while others also consider it to be native to the eastern and central U.S. north to New York. However, the earliest records in North America date to the early to mid 1800s. In its natural environment, it grows on the shores of lakes and rivers, but is also a weed of pastures and roadsides at altitudes up to 1,100 m (3,600 ft).
Emperor's candlesticks · Alexandrian senna · Silver senna · Matara Tea · Christmasbush · Argentine senna · African senna · American senna · Port Royal senna · False sicklepod · Senna odorata · Valamuerto
Text excerpted from the Wikipedia article Senna obtusifolia 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.
