Present on Pacific Islands?  no

Primarily a threat at high elevations?  no

Other Latin names:  Diodia breviseta Benth.; Diodia pilosa Schumach. & Thonn.; Spermacoce pilosa (Schumach. & Thonn.) DC.

Common name(s): [more details]

English: tropical buttonweed

Habit:  herb

Description:  "Scrambling herb with a tap root.  Stems 1-4 m long, often with numerous lateral branches, square in cross-section and with long hairs on the angles.  Leaves yellowish-green, lanceolate, 1.8-6.3 - 0.7-2.8 cm; leaf blade scabrous above with dense tubercular hairs, smooth below; petiole 1-5 mm long.  Flowers 1-8 in axillary clusters at most nodes, each flower 1.5-3 mm long with 4 mauve or white petals.  Seeds dark blackish red, 2-4 mm long, 1.5 mm wide, 0.8 mm thick." (Waterhouse & Mitchell, 1998; pp. 83-84).

Habitat/ecology:  "A strand plant, often near high water mark; grassland and bushland at low altitudes, and a weed of cultivation." (Waterhouse & Mitchell, 1998; pp. 83-84).

Propagation:  Seed (Waterhouse & Mitchell, 1998; pp. 83-84).

Native range:  Tropical America (Waterhouse & Mitchell, 1998; pp. 83-84).

Presence:

Pacific Rim
Country/Terr./St. & Island group	Location	Cited status & Cited as invasive & Cited as cultivated & Cited as aboriginal introduction?	Reference & Comments
Colombia Colombia	Colombia (Republic of)	native	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2011)
Costa Rica Costa Rica	Costa Rica (Republic of)	native	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2011)
Ecuador (Mainland) Ecuador	Ecuador (Republic of) (continental)	native	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2011)
Guatemala Guatemala	Guatemala (Republic of)	native	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2011)
Honduras Honduras	Honduras (Republic of)	native	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2011)
Indonesia Indonesia	Indonesia (Republic of)		Waterhouse, B. M./Mitchell, A. A. (1998) (p. 84)
Mexico Mexico	Mexico (United Mexican States)	native	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2011)
Nicaragua Nicaragua	Nicaragua (Republic of)	native	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2011)
Panama Panama	Panama (Republic of)	native	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2011)
Singapore Singapore	Singapore (Republic of)	introduced invasive	Chong, Kwek Yan/Tan, Hugh T. W./Corlett, Richard T. (2009) (p. 34) Naturalised

Comments:  "An important weed in Africa and India. A weed of coffee, tea and leucaena plantations in Indonesia. A BIOTROP listed species." (Waterhouse & Mitchell, 1998; pp. 83-84).

Additional information:
Additional online information about Diodia sarmentosa is available from the Hawaiian Ecosystems at Risk project (HEAR).

Information about Diodia sarmentosa as a weed (worldwide references) may be available from the Global Compendium of Weeds (GCW).

Taxonomic information about Diodia sarmentosa may be available from the Germplasm Resources Information Network (GRIN).

References:

Chong, Kwek Yan/Tan, Hugh T. W./Corlett, Richard T. 2009. A checklist of the total vascular plant flora of Singapore: native, naturalised and cultivated species. Raffles Museum of Biodiversity Research, National University of Singapore. 273 pp.

U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. 2011. National Genetic Resources Program. Germplasm Resources Information Network (GRIN). Online searchable database.

U.S. Dept. Agr., Nat. Res. Cons. Serv. 2011. The PLANTS Database. National Plant Data Center, Baton Rouge, LA 70874-4490 USA.

Waterhouse, B. M./Mitchell, A. A. 1998. Northern Australia Quarantine Strategy: weeds target list. Second edition. Australian Quarantine & Inspection Service, Miscellaneous Publication No. 6/98. 110 pp.