Mikania scandens

Mikania scandens is a species of flowering plant in the aster family, Asteraceae. Its common names include climbing hempvine, climbing hempweed, and louse-plaster.[1] It is native to the eastern and central United States, its distribution extending into Tamaulipas in Mexico.[1] Reports of its presence in Ontario in Canada are erroneous.[2] It is an introduced and invasive species on many Pacific Islands[3] and in parts of southern Asia.[4]

Mikania scandens

Secure  (NatureServe)
Scientific classification
Kingdom:
Plantae
(unranked):
Angiosperms
(unranked):
Eudicots
(unranked):
Asterids
Order:
Asterales
Family:
Asteraceae
Genus:
Mikania
Species:
M. scandens
Binomial name
Mikania scandens
Synonyms

Eupatorium scandens
Mikania angulosa
Mikania batatifolia
Willoughbya heterophylla

Description

This species is a perennial herb which grows as a branching vine. The leaves are oppositely arranged at swollen nodes on the stem. They have triangular or heart-shaped, sometimes toothed blades up to 15 centimeters long by 11 wide. The flower heads are clustered in panicles. The flower head is about half a centimeter long and is enclosed in narrow, sometimes purple-tinged phyllaries. The flowers are pinkish, purplish, or white. The fruit is a dark-colored, resinous achene about half a centimeter long, including its pappus of white or purplish bristles.[2][3]

Biology

The pappus-tipped seeds are dispersed on the wind or on clothing or fur. The plant also reproduces vegetatively by rooting from the nodes on sections of stem.[3] The climbing herbage can become weedy and dense, sometimes covering other vegetation.[5] It also has allelopathic effects on other plants.[4]

Its native habitat includes wooded areas and swamps.[3]

This is a host plant for the larvae of the Little Metalmark (Calephelis virginiensis), and the adult consumes the nectar.[6]

Uses

This plant is cultivated as a cover crop and a livestock fodder. It is also grown as an ornamental plant[3] and it is used in butterfly gardens.[6]

It is used in traditional medicine systems of the Indian subcontinent as a treatment for gastric ulcers, wounds, and insect bites and stings.[7]

References
  1. "Mikania scandens". Germplasm Resources Information Network (GRIN). Agricultural Research Service (ARS), United States Department of Agriculture (USDA). Retrieved 21 January 2018.
  2. Mikania scandens. Flora of North America.
  3. Mikania scandens. Pacific Island Ecosystems at Risk (PIER).
  4. Piyasena, K. and H. Dharmaratne. (2013). Allelopathic activity studies of Mikania scandens. Natural Product Research 27(1), 76-79.
  5. Moon, M., et al. (1993). Acclimatization to flooding of the herbaceous vine, Mikania scandens. Functional Ecology 7(5), 610-15.
  6. Mikania scandens. Natives For Your Neighborhood. The Institute for Regional Conservation, Florida.
  7. Dey, P., et al. (2011). Neuropharmacological properties of Mikania scandens (L.) Willd.(Asteraceae). Journal of Advanced Pharmaceutical Technology & Research 2(4), 255-59.
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