Sphenoclea zeylanica

Sphenoclea zeylanica
In bloom
Botanical illustration
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Clade: Asterids
Order: Solanales
Family: Sphenocleaceae
Genus: Sphenoclea
Species:
S. zeylanica
Binomial name
Sphenoclea zeylanica
Synonyms
List
    • Reichelia palustris Blanco
    • Schrebera pongati DC.
    • Pongatium indicum Lam.
    • Pongatium spongiosum Blanco
    • Pongatium zeylanicum Kuntze
    • Rapinia herbacea Lour.
    • Sphenoclea pongatium A.DC.

Sphenoclea zeylanica, called chickenspike, gooseweed, and wedgewort, is a widespread species of flowering plant in the genus Sphenoclea, native to Africa, Madagascar, tropical and subtropical Asia, and Australia. It is widely introduced in the New World tropics and subtopics from the southern United States to northern Argentina. Its young leaves are edible and are occasionally eaten, perhaps with a light boiling. A common weed of rice paddies, it can cause yield losses from 25 to 50%.