Herbarium JCB

Argemone mexicana L.

Family : PAPAVERACEAE
(POPPY FAMILY)
Family (as per The Plant List) : Papaveraceae
Species : Argemone mexicana
Species Name (as per The Plant List) : Argemone mexicana L.
Common name : Broad-leaved Sorel, Prickly Poppy, Mexican Poppy
Vernacular name : Satyanasini (Hin.); Arashina dhatura, Dhaturi gida (Kan.); Pirama thandu, Virumalakachi, Brammadhandu (Tam.); Brahma dandi, Bramhadandi, Yerrisuma (Tel.); Agara, Agora, Kanta kusum, Dengebejari, Sarpuni, Udasmari, Lappar phul, Udisamari, Nippania (Ori.)
Key identification features : Armed herb to almost an undershrub with yellow latex and dissected leaves which have lobes ending in spines. Flowers are 3 to 5 cm across, terminal, solitary and yellow in colour, sometimes creamish-white also. Fruit is a prickly capsule, oblong, with many black seeds.
Habit : Herb
Flower, Fruit : September-February
Native : West Indies, Mexico
Comments : Common in waste places and in agriculture fields as a weed. Root is an antidote for scorpion bites. Yellow latex of the plant is applied as an antiseptic. Seed-oil is used for lighting. Consumption of the seed-oil is injurious for health and may cause jaundice. (Saxena & Brahmam, 1994)
Conservation Status : Not Evaluated (NE)
Distribution Locality : Throughout Eastern Ghats.
World Distribution : Mexico, West Indies; Naturalized in the Tropics
Literature : Pullaiah et al., 2002 - Flora of Eastern Ghats Vol. 1; H.O. Saxena & M. Brahmam, 1994- Flora of Orissa Vol. 1 ; R. S. Rao et al., 1986 - Flora of West Godavari District ; R. S. Rao and S. H. Sreeramulu, 1986 - Flora of Srikakulam District ; H. O. Saxena and M. Brahmam, 1989 - The Flora of Similipal, Orissa; N.P.Singh, 1988. Flora of Eastern Karnataka; Franklin Benjamin & G.V.S.Murthy, 2013. Flora of Sri Venkateswara National Park, Andhra Pradesh, BSI.; Matthew, K.M., The Flora of Tamil Nadu Carnatic, Vol.3 (1). Diocesan Press, Madras. 1983.
Citation : Sankara Rao, K., Arun Singh R., Deepak Kumar, Raja K Swamy and Navendu Page (2016). Digital Flora of Eastern Ghats. http://easternghats.ces.iisc.ernet.in/plants.php?name=Argemone mexicana. Downloaded on 21 April 2025.