Bidens Pilosa Characteristics

Commonly known as spanish needle or beggar s ticks bidens pilosa is a common crop weed and wasteland plant widespread on every continent except antarctica.

Bidens pilosa characteristics. Bidens pilosa is an annual species of herbaceous flowering plant in the daisy family asteraceae its many common names include black jack beggarticks farmer s friends and spanish needle but most commonly referred to as cobblers pegs it is native to the americas but is widely distributed as an introduced species in other regions worldwide including eurasia africa australia south america. Pilosa is capable of surviving severe droughts it prefers to grow in areas with annual rainfall in the range 500 3500 mm galinato et al 1999. Bidens pilosa is a annual growing to 1 m 3ft 3in. The plant is native to south america but has become common in many tropical and subtropical areas of the world.

Pilosa has a strong taproot and tolerates low humidity characteristics that allow it to grow in fairly dry places. It lowers blood pressure. A resinous flavour 173. The plants database includes the following 51 species of bidens.

Easily recognizable by the sharp aggravating seed pods that embed themselves into hair and clothing bidens pilosa is used in both traditional chinese medicine and western herbalism as well as in folk medical traditions around the world. Bidens pilosa hairy beggarticks bidens populifolia oahu beggarticks bidens reptans manzanilla trepador bidens sandvicensis. Capitula with 5 8 ray flowers with well developed rays 5 16 mm long and involucral bracts numbering mostly 12 vs. It reduces the aorta resting tone and inhibits the kcl and cacl2 induced contractions by 95.

Bidens pilosa has outer involucral bracts a whorl or several whorls of modified leaves surrounding a flower or an infloresence that are linear or lanceolate and are finely hairy on the margins edges. Spanish needle scientifically known as bidenspilosa is a medical herb that forms part of the asteraceae family. The black seeds with awns bristle like appendages are very distinctive. Pilosa with capitula without ray flowers or with short rays up to 3 mm and involucral bracts numbering 7 10.

Added to salads or steamed and added to soups and. Leaves raw or cooked 177. The annual plant grows to about 2 metres in height and grows aggressively often times becoming weedy. The effects are long lasting.

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