Phyllanthus tenellus

Phyllanthus tenellus is a herbaceous plant in the leafflower family, Phyllanthaceae. It is commonly called Mascarene Island leaf flower^[1] as it is native to the Mascarene Islands.^[3] It is often a weed in flower beds, gardens, roadsides, and other disturbed areas.^[3]

Phyllanthus tenellus
Phyllanthus tenellus leaves, flowers, and fruits
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Plantae
Clade:	Tracheophytes
Clade:	Angiosperms
Clade:	Eudicots
Clade:	Rosids
Order:	Malpighiales
Family:	Phyllanthaceae
Genus:	Phyllanthus
Species:	P. tenellus
Binomial name
Phyllanthus tenellus Roxb.[1]
Synonyms[2]
Diasperus tenellus (Roxb.) Kuntze Phyllanthus nummulariaefolius Croizat

Description

It grows to be 20–50 cm (7.9–19.7 in) tall.^[3] The main stem does not have leaves but rather small scales (see phyllanthoid branching) and the secondary stems contain the flowers and leaves.^[3] The flowers are inconspicuous, small, and unisexual. Male and female flowers are located on the same plant.

Taxonomy

It was originally published in William Roxburgh's 1814 Hortus Bengalensis^[4] (as a nomen nudum) and later validated in his 1832 Flora Indica.^[5][6]

It has two accepted varieties:^[2][7]

• Phyllanthus tenellus var. arabicus (Yemen, Saudi Arabia) Müll.Arg.
• Phyllanthus tenellus var. tenellus (Angola, Comoros, Madagascar, Mauritius, Mozambique, Réunion, Tanzania)

Distribution

In addition to the Mascarene Islands, P. tenellus is possibly also native to eastern Africa, other western Indian Ocean islands, and the Arabian Peninsula.^[3] It has become a naturalized weed in tropical and subtropical areas, including Australia, Mexico, South America, Eastern North America (from Florida to Virginia west to California), as well as Mediterranean region, parts of Asia and the West Indies.^[3]