Gotu cola (Centella asiatica) is a species of plants in Apiaceae, an annual herb that grows and flowering throughout the year, growing vines, wild in many plantations, fields, roadside and paddy fields, widely used as ground cover, vegetables, snacks and drug.
C. asiatica has vines, many branches and each will form new plants. The leaves are shaped like a kidney where at the tip of the jagged edge it is located around the stem.
Flowers appear on the armpits of leaves and continue to be shaped like an umbrella, white or pink, hermaphrodite, 3 mm with five to six corolla lobes. Each flower in two green bracts, produces five stamens. Fruit that is oval shaped, has a bitter but fragrant taste.
Gotu cola has several varieties. Red gotu cola or stone gotu cola is commonly found in rocky, dry and open areas, growing vines with stolon and has no stem, but has rhizoma. Green gotu cola is often found in paddy fields and between grasses, damp and open places or somewhat shaded and has four sub-varieties.
The leaves have a sweet taste while the vellarine substance gives a bitter taste. Most gotu cola is consumed for fresh vegetables, but is often also used as tea, fried in flour as chips, extracted to fill capsules or cream, ointments, acne medications and body lotions.
TAXON
Kingdom: Plantae
Phylum: Tracheophyta
Subphylum: Angiospermae
Class: Magnoliopsida
Order: Apiales
Family: Apiaceae
Subfamily: Mackinlayoideae
Genus: Centella L. in Sp. Pl., ed. 2.: 1393 (1763)
Species: Centella asiatica (L.) Urb. in C.F.P.von Martius & auct. suc. (eds.), Fl. Bras. 11(1): 287 (1879)
HOMOTYPIC SYNONYMS
Hydrocotyle asiatica L. in Sp. Pl.: 234 (1753)
HETEROTYPIC SYNONYMS
Centella asiatica var. boninensis (Nakai ex Tuyama) H.Hara in Enum. Spermatophytarum Japon. 3: 304 (1954)
Centella asiatica var. crispata (Maxim.) Y.Yabe in Rev. Umb. Jap.: 18 (1902)
Centella asiatica f. crispata (Maxim.) H.Hara (1954)
Centella asiatica var. cristata Makino in Bot. Mag. (Tokyo) 18: 65 (1904)
Centella boninensis Nakai ex Tuyama in Bot. Mag. (Tokyo) 50: 31 (1936)
Centella hirtella Nannf. in Svensk Bot. Tidskr. 18: 405 (1924)
Centella ulugurensis (Engl.) Domin in Bot. Jahrb. Syst. 41: 157 (1908)
Trisanthus cochinchinensis Lour. in Fl. Cochinch.: 176 (1790)
Chondrocarpus asiaticus Nutt. in Gen. N. Amer. Pl. 2: corr. (1818)
Chondrocarpus triflorus Nutt. in Gen. N. Amer. Pl. 2 (1818)
Glyceria asiatica Nutt. in Gen. N. Amer. Pl. 1: 177 (1818)
Glyceria triflora Nutt. in Gen. N. Amer. Pl. 1 (1818)
Hydrocotyle abyssinica Gand. in Bull. Soc. Bot. France 65: 32 (1918)
Hydrocotyle artensis Montrouz. in Mém. Acad. Imp. Sci. Lyon, Sect. Sci., sér. 2, 10: 212 (1860)
Hydrocotyle asiatica var. crispata Maxim. in Bull. Acad. Imp. Sci. Saint-Pétersbourg, sér. 3, 31: 44 (1886)
Hydrocotyle asiatica var. monantha F.Muell. in Monthly Not. Pap. & Proc. Roy. Soc. Tasmania 1873: 60 (1874)
Hydrocotyle brasiliensis Scheidw. in Allg. Gartenzeitung 10: 286 (1842)
Hydrocotyle brevipedata St.-Lag. in Ann. Soc. Linn. Lyon 7: 128 (1880)
Hydrocotyle brevipes DC. in Prodr. 4: 63 (1830)
Hydrocotyle dentata A.Rich. in Ann. Gén. Sci. Phys. 4: 182 (1820)
Hydrocotyle ficarifolia Stokes in Bot. Mat. Med. 2: 57 (1812)
Hydrocotyle ficarioides Lam. in Encycl. 3: 153 (1789)
Hydrocotyle hebecarpa DC. (1830)
Hydrocotyle inaequipes DC. (1830)
Hydrocotyle indivisa Banks & Sol. ex Hook.f. in Fl. Nov.-Zel. 1: 83 (1852)
Hydrocotyle leptostachys Spreng. in Syst. Veg., ed. 16. 1: 876 (1824)
Hydrocotyle lunata Lam. (1789)
Hydrocotyle lurida Hance in W.G.Walpers, Ann. Bot. Syst. 2: 690 (1852)
Hydrocotyle natans Thunb. in Hydrocotyle: 3 (1798)
Hydrocotyle nummularioides A.Rich. (1820)
Hydrocotyle pallida DC. (1830)
Hydrocotyle reniformis Walter in Fl. Carol.: 113 (1788)
Hydrocotyle sarmentosa Salisb. in Prodr. Stirp. Chap. Allerton: 159 (1796)
Hydrocotyle sylvicola Cordem. in Fl. Réunion: 434 (1895)
Hydrocotyle thunbergiana Spreng. in Neue Entdeck. Pflanzenk. 1: 283 (1820)
Hydrocotyle ulugurensis Engl. in Bot. Jahrb. Syst. 28: 444 (1900)
Hydrocotyle wightiana Wall. in Numer. List: n.° 7220 (1832)
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VERNACULAR NAME
Afrikaans: Waternael, Varkoortjies, Waternavel, Winternael
Angami: Gara, Gharie
Assamese: Bar Manimuni
Bengali: ব্রহ্মমণ্ডুকী - থানকুনি Brahmamanduki, Thanakuni
Botswana: Bodilabadinku, Bolila-ba-linku
Chinese (simplified): 积雪草
Chinese (traditional): 崩大碗 - 積雪草 - 蚶殼草 - 雷公根
Czech: Pupečníkovec asijský
Danish: Asiatisk centella
English: Gotu Cola, Gotu Kola, Asiatic pennywort, Bubbles, Coinleaf, Ibdiab Pennywort, Indian pennywort, Little pig's ears, Marsh pepperwort, Urban Marsh Pepperwort, Pennyweed, Spadeleaf
Finnish: Rohtosammakonputki
French: Herbe boileau
Guangdong: 崩大碗 - 雷公根
Gujarati: Brahmi, Khadabrahmi Hindi: ब्राह्मी - बल्लारी - भीखी - ब्रह्ममांडुकि - खुलखुदी - मांडूकी - कुलकुडी - ब्रह्मा माण्डुकी Brahmi, Ballari, Bheki, Brahmamanduki, Khulakhudi, Manduki, Kulakudi, Brahma manduki
Hong Kong: 崩大碗 - 雷公根
Indonesian: Pegagan
Japanese: ツボクサ
Java: Pegangan
Kannada: Ondelagu soppu, Urage soppu, Saraswati soppu, Brahmi soppu, Gadde Baraga, Ilikivi Soppu, Ondelaga, Tambuli Gida, Timare, Patike
Karnataka: Tulu
Konkani: Ekpani, Umdri, Goan
Korean: 병풀
Lesotho: Bodilabadinku
Macao: 崩大碗 - 雷公根
Malayalam: Kodangal, Kudakan, Kuthirakkulambuchedi, Mutthil, Vellara, Kutannal
Manipuri: Peruk
Mapudungun: Piwichenlawen
Marathi: Brahmi, Ekpani, Karivana
Mizo: Hnah-Bial, Lambak
Nepali: ब्रह्मभूति - घोड-तप्रे Brahmabuti, Ghod-Tapre
Oria: Talkuni, Thalkuri, Bhui pataki, Duasag, Duvapathro, Mandukaparnni, Manduki, Mula Parnni, Sarasbati, Soma-Balli, Srabani
Palauan: Elisichur
Portuguese: Pé-de-cavalo
Russian: Центелла азиатская
Sanskrit: Mandookaparni, Bhandi, Bhandiri, Bheki, Mandukaparni, Manduki
Sinhala : ගොටුකෝලා Gotukola
Slovak: Centela ázijská
Sotho: Bodilabadinku, Bolila-balinku, Bolila-ba-linku
South East Queensland: Pennywort
Southern Africa: Asian Pennywort
Spanish: Oreja de ratón
Sweden: Sallatsspikblad
Taiwan: 雷公根
Tamil: வல்லாரை - ககாப்பி - மாதாண்டி - பருணி - பிந்திரி - யோகனா-வள்ளி Vallarai, Kacappi, Matanti, Paruni, Pintiri, Vallarai, Yocana-Valli
Tangkhul: Kongrihan
Telugu: Brahmi, Saraswataku, Mandukaparni, Sarasvati-Aku
Thai: บัวบก
Tswana: Bodilabadinku, Bolila-ba-linku
Venda: Mukulungwane, Tshiwa-mwando
Vietnamese: Rau răm Zulu: Icudwane, Isixhubho samazinyo, Umamgobozane, Umuthi wamazinyo
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