Pouzolzia zeylanica (PROSEA)

Plant Resources of South-East Asia Introduction

List of species

Pouzolzia zeylanica (L.) Benn.

Protologue: Pl. jav. rar.: 67 (1838).

Family: Urticaceae

Synonyms

• Pouzolzia indica (L.) Gaudich. (1830).

Vernacular names

• Indonesia: deresan (Javanese), jukut krincing , urang-aring (Sundanese)
• Malaysia: ubai-ubai, daun balam, kudu paya
• Philippines: tuia, apoyapoyan (Tagalog), kayutkoran (Bagobo)
• Vietnam: bọ mắm, thuốc dòi.

Distribution

From India, throughout South-East Asia to Australia. Introduced in Central America.

Uses

In Malaysia, a poultice of the leaves is placed on the abdomen of children as a vermifuge, or in general for stomach-ache. It is also externally applied as a poultice for sores. In Indonesia, the leaves are used as a poultice for ulcers. In Java, the juice from fresh leaves or a decoction of the dried leaves is drunk as a galactagogue. In Vietnam, the whole plant is used in folk medicine for cough, sore throat, and as a diuretic and galactagogue. In the Philippines, the leaves are used as a cicatrizant for gangrenous ulcers. In India, the entire plant is used internally for gonorrhoea and syphilis and externally for cuts and wounds. In China, the plant or its roots are pounded into a soft mass and applied to sores, abscesses, and swellings as a vulnerary and emollient. The leaves are occasionally eaten as a vegetable.

Observations

• A monoecious perennial herb up to 1 m tall, stem ascending, basal part creeping and rooting with erect branches.
• Leaves lowermost opposite, upper leaves alternate, broadly ovate to elliptical, 1-5(-10) cm × 0.2-3 cm, base acute, obtuse or rounded, apex acute, margin entire, 3-veined at base, hairy or glabrous, petiole short, stipules broadly ovate, ciliate.
• Flowers in a sessile bisexual cluster; male flowers shortly pedicellate tepals 4; female flowers subsessile to sessile, perianth tubular with 4-5 ribs or wings, stigma caducous.
• Achene ovoid or ellipsoid, about 2 mm long, black, shining, enclosed by a thickened perianth.

P. zeylanica is found in usually damp open forest, brushwood, arable land, grasslands, and disturbed habitats, from sea-level up to 1600 m altitude.

Selected sources

• [74] Backer, C.A. & Bakhuizen van den Brink Jr, R.C., 1964—1968. Flora of Java. 3 volumes. Noordhoff, Groningen, the Netherlands. Vol. 1 (1964) 647 pp., Vol. 2 (1965) 641 pp., Vol. 3 (1968) 761 pp.
• [331] Gagnepain, F. (Editor), 1907—1950. Flore générale de l'Indo-Chine [General flora of Indo-China]. 7 volumes + suppl. Masson & Cie, Paris, France.
• [407] Heyne, K., 1950. De nuttige planten van Indonesië [The useful plants of Indonesia]. 3rd Edition. 2 volumes. W. van Hoeve, 's-Gravenhage, the Netherlands/Bandung, Indonesia. 1660 + CCXLI pp.
• [455] Huang, T.-C. (Editor), 1993—. Flora of Taiwan. 2nd Edition. Editorial Committee of the Flora of Taiwan, Taipei, Taiwan, Republic of China.
• [728] Nene, Y.L., Thapliyai, P.N., Kumar, K., 1986. Screening of some of plant extracts for antifungal properties. Labdev Journal of Science and Technology B 6(4): 226—228.
• [739] Nguyen Van Duong, 1993. Medicinal plants of Vietnam, Cambodia and Laos. Mekong Printing, Santa Ana, California, United States. 528 pp.

Main genus page

• Pouzolzia

Authors

• Mulyati Rahayu