Persicaria orientalis (L.) Spach, Polygonaceae

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Present on Pacific Islands?  no

Primarily a threat at high elevations?  no

Other Latin names:  Polygonum orientale L.

Common name(s): [more details]

Chinese: hong liao

English: kiss-me-over-the-garden-gate, lady's thumb, prince's-feather, prince's-plume, princess-feather

French: bâton de St.-Jean, monte-au-ciel, persicaire du Levant, renouée d'Orient, renouée orientale

Japanese: o-ke-tade

Spanish: disciplinas de monja, gitanas, golillas de corte

Habit:  herb

Description:  "Hairy, fibrous-rooted annual with erect stems 20-150-(250) cm tall. Leaves on main stem similar to those on branches; petiole to c. 10 cm long, densely hispid. Lamina 7-25 x 4-17 cm, ovate, entire, with margin and veins densely hispid above and below, otherwise hairs sparser; base rounded to cordate, broadly cuneate on inflorescence leaves; apex cuspidate. Ochreae c. 2 cm long on main part of stem, green, with apical lobes prominently setose. Inflorescence. a large open panicle with densely hairy branches terminating in dense pendulous spikes (1)-3-8 cm long; pedicels to 5 mm long, enclosed by bracts until anthesis; bracts 4-6 mm long, scarious, with appressed hairs, densely ciliate. Perianth 3-5 mm long, crimson in bud, somewhat paler at anthesis, accrescent, eglandular; segments broad-ovate to broad-elliptic, imbricate. Nut c. 4 mm long, broad-ovoid and ± biconvex, glossy black, with a shallow depression in the middle on each side" (Webb et al., 1988; p. 973).

Habitat/ecology:  In New Zealand, "waste land, coastal reclamation ground, gardens" (Webb et al., 1988; p. 973).  In Papua New Guinea, "a swamp plant, becoming a weed of grazing land during dry seasons when the swamps recede"  (Henty & Pritchard, 1975; p. 139).

Propagation:  Seed

Native range:  Asia and Australia, widely cultivated & naturalized elsewhere (GRIN).

Presence:

Pacific
Country/Terr./St. & Island group	Location	Cited status & Cited as invasive & Cited as cultivated & Cited as aboriginal introduction?	Reference & Comments
Papua New Guinea Papua New Guinea (eastern New Guinea Island)	Papua New Guinea (eastern New Guinea Island)	native	Henty, E. E./Pritchard, G. H. (1975) (p. 139) As Polygonum orientale L. At low altitudes.
Philippines Philippine Islands	Philippine Islands	native	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2011)
Philippines Philippine Islands	Philippine Islands		Merrill, Elmer D. (1923) (p. 123) In open wet places along streams at low and medium altitudes.

Pacific Rim
Country/Terr./St. & Island group	Location	Cited status & Cited as invasive & Cited as cultivated & Cited as aboriginal introduction?	Reference & Comments
Australia Australia (continental)	New South Wales	native	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2011)
Australia Australia (continental)	Northern Territory	native	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2011)
Australia Australia (continental)	Queensland	native	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2011)
China China	China (People's Republic of)	native	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2011)
Indonesia Indonesia	Indonesia (Republic of)	native	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2011)
Japan Japan	Japan (country)	native	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2011)
Japan Japan	Japan (country)	introduced	Mito, Toshikazu/Uesugi, Tetsuro (2004) (p. 181)
North Korea North Korea	North Korea (Democratic People's Republic of)	native	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2011)
South Korea South Korea	South Korea (Republic of)	native	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2011)
Malaysia Malaysia	Malaysia (country of)	native	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2011)
New Zealand New Zealand	New Zealand (country)	introduced invasive cultivated	Webb, C. J./Sykes, W. R./Garnock-Jones, P. J. (1988) (p. 973)
Singapore Singapore	Singapore (Republic of)	introduced invasive	Chong, Kwek Yan/Tan, Hugh T. W./Corlett, Richard T. (2009) (p. 68) Naturalised
Taiwan Taiwan	Taiwan Island	native	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2011)
Thailand Thailand	Thailand (Kingdom of)	native	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2011)
Vietnam Vietnam	Vietnam (Socialist Republic of)	native	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2011)

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

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

Taxonomic information about Persicaria orientalis 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.

Hafliger, Toni J./Wolf, Matthias. 1988. Dicot weeds, vol. 1. CIBA-GEIGY Ltd., Basle, Switzerland. 335 pp.

Henty, E. E./Pritchard, G. H. 1975. Weeds of New Guinea and their control. 2nd edition. Department of Forests, Division of Botany, Botany Bull. No. 7. Lae, Papua New Guinea. 180 pp.

Merrill, Elmer D. 1923. An enumeration of Philippine flowering plants, vol. 2 [reprint]. Bureau of Printing, Manila. 530 pp.

Mito, Toshikazu/Uesugi, Tetsuro. 2004. Invasive alien species in Japan: the status quo and the new regulation for prevention of their adverse effects. Global Environmental Research 8(2)/2004: 171-191.

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

Webb, C. J./Sykes, W. R./Garnock-Jones, P. J. 1988. Flora of New Zealand, Volume IV: Naturalised pteridophytes, gymnosperms, dicotyledons. Botany Division, DSIR, Christchurch. 1365 pp.

Zhengyi, Wu/Raven, Peter H./Deyuan, Hong. 2011. Flora of China (online resource).