Waltheria Species, Boaterbush, Buff Coat, Leather Coat, Monkeybush, Sleepy Morning, Velvet Leaf

Sleepy morning is also known as velvet leaf, marsh-mallow, monkeybush, boater bush, leather coat, buff coat.
I found th...Read Moreis Florida native weed, 'er I mean wildflower, growing alongside railroad tracks here in Fort Lauderdale.

The plant pictured has been growing in my yard for several months. It's growing in mostly sun with normal watering. It has been blooming for just about a month now. The flowers are very tiny, no more than 1/8 inch across.

Some information I dug up on the web about the plant was surprising to say the least. "Benefits and Detriments.—In the Turks and Caicos Islands, sleepy morning is used to make an herb tea (Wood 2001). Durawhite an extract of sleepy morning, is used in a commercial cosmetic for its ability to inhibit melanin synthesis and whiten the skin (Janssen Cosmeceutical Care 2001). The plant contains steroid derivatives and alkaloids of the adouetine group that perhaps make it physiologically active. Various extracts are used as standard febrifugal, purgative, emollient, tonic, analgesic, and astringent herbal medicines in Africa (Burkill 2000). In Hawaii, the root is chewed to relieve sore throat (Neal 1965). Stems are used as a chew stick, and extracts of the plant are used as an eye bath and a remedy for hemoptysis in Panama (Agricultural Research Service 2001). Seeds are sold commercially, and the species is cultivated in gardens as a medicinal plant. The plant is browsed by all types of livestock, especially when young (Burkill 2000). Sleepy morning forage in a Mozambique valley during the rainy season contained 6.4 percent crude protein, 0.12 percentphosphorus, and 0.51 percent calcium (Faftine and others 2001)."

Pretty neat plant, for a weed, er... I mean wildflower and it's pretty good looking too.

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