About Alternanthera pungens Kunth
Alternanthera pungens Kunth is a creeping, prostrate perennial pioneer plant in the Amaranthaceae family. It spreads both by seed and vegetatively, and roots often develop at the nodes of its spreading stems. This is a ruderal species that grows on roadsides, path verges, and waste places. It is thought to be native to Central and South America, and has become widely established in Australia and Southern Africa. Other species in the Alternanthera genus, such as Alternanthera sessilis (L.) R.Br. ex DC., have been recorded from Tropical Africa for a long time, and it would be difficult to prove that these are invasive species. During the rainy season, Alternanthera pungens forms dense mats of stems and leaves. In the dry season or during drought, the above-ground plant material dies off, and the dormant plant is sustained by its fleshy taproot. Clusters of small white flowers form in the leaf axils. Its small, khaki-coloured, prickly, papery fruits are stemless, grow in the leaf axils, and are spread by livestock, vehicles, and livestock feed. The shiny seeds are brownish, compressed, lenticular, and measure about 1.5 mm across. This species was illustrated as early as 1732 by Johann Jacob Dillenius in his work Hortus Elthamensis, volume 1, where it was described as "Achyracantha repens foliis Bliti pallidi". It was illustrated again in 1836 by Jean-Christophe Heyland (1792-1866) in Histoire naturelle des Iles Canaries, volume 2(3): page 193, plate 199. Kew currently recognizes 139 species in the genus Alternanthera.
