Alternanthera sessilis (L.) R.Br. ex DC.

 
  • Family : AMARANTHACEAE
    (Amaranth Family)
  • Family (Hindi name) : GARUNDI FAMILY (गरूण्डी फैमिली)
  • Family (as per The APG System III) : Amaranthaceae
  • Synonym(s) : Achyranthes sessilis (L.) Besser; Allaganthera forsskaolei Mart.; Gomphrena sessilis L.; Illecebrum sessile (L.) L.; Paronychia sessilis (L.) Desf.; Paronychia tetragona Moench
  • Species Name (as per The IPNI) : Alternanthera sessilis (L.) R.Br. ex DC.
  • Common name : Joy Weed; Dwarf Copperleaf; Sessile Joy Weed
  • Vernacular name :
    • Gudrisag (Hindi)
    • Ongonne soppu, Hon-gonne soppu (Kannada)
    • Ponnaankannikeerai (Tamil)
    • Matsyakshi (Sanskrit)
    • Kozhuppa, Kozhuppacheera, Meenamgani, Ponamgani, Ponnamkannikkeera (Malayalam)
    • Ponnaganti kura (Telugu)
    • Kolamsago (Oria)
  • Habit : Herb
  • Comments / notes : Occasional on plains to 1500m,abundant in moist clayey soil, in low-lying marshes, river-banks, irrigation canals etc. Also sometimes grown for its edible leaves and used in local cuisines.
  • Flower, Fruit : Throughout the year
  • Distribution :
    • Andhra Pradesh : Anantapur district, Chittoor district, Kadapa district, East Godavari district, Guntur district, Krishna district, Kurnool district, Nellore district, Prakasam district, Srikakulam district, Vishakapatnam district, Vizianagaram district, West Godavari district
    • Telangana : Nalgonda district, Khammam district, Mehboobnagar district
    • Karnataka : All districts of Karnataka
    • Kerala : All districts of Kerala
    • Maharashtra : Akola district, Prabalmachi
    • Odisha : Angul district, Balasore district, Bargarh district, Bolangir district, Boudh district, Cuttack district, Deogarh district, Dhenkanal district, Gajapati district, Ganjam district, Kalhandi district, Kandhamal district, Kendrapara district, Keonjhar district, Khurda district, Koraput district, Malkangiri district, Mayurbhanj district, Puri district, Rayagada district, Sambalpur district, Sundergarh district
    • Tamil Nadu : Coimbatore district, Dindigul district, Dharmapuri district, Kanchipuram (Changalpattu-CGP) district, Karur district, Krishnagiri district, Madurai district, Namakkal district, Pudukkottai district, Sivaganga district, Salem district, Tiruchirapalli district, Tiruvannamalai district, Villipuram district, Vellore district
    • Madhya Pradesh : Hoshangabad district
    • Arunachal Pradesh : Changlang, Kameng, Lohit, Subansiri, Tirap
    • Delhi : Delhi
    • Uttar Pradesh : Uttar Pradesh
    • Punjab : Punjab
    • Andaman and Nicobar Islands : Andaman Islands
    • Lakshadweep : Kalpeni Islands, Thinnakara Islands
  • Native : Andaman Islands, Bangladesh, Belize, Bolivia, Borneo, Brazil, Cambodia, Cayman Islands, China, Colombia, Costa Rica, Cuba, Dominican Republic, Bhutan, El Salvador, French Guiana, Guatemala, Guyana, Haiti, Honduras, India, Iran, Iraq, Jamaica, Japan, Jawa,
  • Exotic/Native : Native
  • World Distribution : Tropics & sub-tropics of the World
  • Conservation Status : Least Concern (LC)
  • Literature :
    • J.L.Ellis, 1990- Flora of Nallamalais Vol. 2
    • H.O. Saxena & M. Brahmam, 1995- Flora of Orissa Vol. 3
    • 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 Similipahar (Similipal), Orissa
    • IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2014.1.
    • Matthew, K.M., The Flora of Tamil Nadu Carnatic, Vol.3 (2). Diocesan Press, Madras. 1983
    • N.P.Singh, 1988. Flora of Eastern Karnataka
    • Sasidharan, N. 2011. Flowering plants of Kerala. DVD, V 2, KFRI
    • Saldanha & Nicolson, 1976 – Flora of Hassan District
    • Cecil J. Saldanha, S. R. Ramesh (1984). Flora of Karnataka State vol. 1. Oxford and IBH Publishing Co, New Delhi
    • Gowda, 2004 - Sringeri
    • Ramaswamy & Razi, 1973 – Flora of Bangalore
    • Seetharam et al., 2000 – Flora of Gulbarga
    • Rao & Razi, 1981 – Flora of Mysore
    • Keshava Murthy & Yoganarasimhan, 1990 – Flora of Coorg
    • Gopalakrishna Bhat, 2003 - Flora of Udupi
    • Gopalakrishna Bhat, 2014 - Flora of South Kanara
    • Manjunath et al., 2003 - Flora of Davanagere
    • Kamble & Pradhan, 1988. Flora of Akola District, Maharashtra. Botanical Survey of India
    • C., Sudhakar Reddy & Roy, Parth. (2011). Plant Diversity of Lakshadweep Islands.
    • G.S Giri., A.Pramanik., H.J. Chowdhery., G.D Pal and S.K. Das (2008). Materials for Arunachal Pradesh, Vol (2), Pg: 301
  • Read more :
  • Permalink : http://indiaflora-ces.iisc.ac.in/plants.php?name=Alternanthera sessilis
  • Citation : Sankara Rao, K., Deepak Kumar (2025). India Flora Online. http://indiaflora-ces.iisc.ac.in/plants.php?name=Alternanthera sessilis. Downloaded on 31 October 2025.

Botanical Description

Herbarium Specimen(s)

Line Drawings

Field Image(s)

India Distribution

World Distribution
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