Hyptis brevipes

Family: Lamiaceae

What it is like

A herb. It grows each year from seed. It has spindle shaped tubers. The stems are 1-1.5 m high. The angles of the stem are rough. The leaf stalk is 0.3-2.2 cm long. The leaf blade is oval or sword shaped and 2.5-7.5 cm long by 1-2.5 cm wide. It is bluish green. The edges have teeth. It tapers to the tip. Flowers are white. The nutlets are dark brown and oval. They are 1 mm long by 0.5 mm wide.

There are about 350-400 Hyptis species. Most are tropical or subtropical.

Where it is found

A tropical plant. In China it grows in open waste places at low elevations in the tropical south. It grows in marshy places.

Countries/locations it is found in

Africa, Argentina, Asia, Brazil, Cambodia, China, Cuba, East Africa, Guiana, Guianas, Guyana, India, Indochina, Indonesia, Malaysia, Mexico, Mozambique, Myanmar, North America, Paraguay, Peru, SE Asia, South America, Suriname, Taiwan, Thailand, Trinidad, Uruguay, USA, Venezuela, West Indies, Widespread in tropics

How it is used for food

The leaves are eaten as a vegetable.

It is not a popular vegetable.

Edible parts

Leaves

How it is grown

Its other names

Local names

Duan bing diao qiu cao

Synonyms

Pycnanthemum elongatum Blanco;