General Information

COMMON NAMES: Creeping Charlie GLOBAL DISTRIBUTION: NATIVE Caribbean - n.S.America COOK ISLANDS STATUS: Introduced - Recent, Not naturalised; Land, lowlands, gardens SIGNIFICANCE LIST: Ornamental leaves KEY FEATURES: Creeping herb. STEMS slender, hairy, rooting at nodes. LEAVES opposite, ~round, to 5cm, surface wrinkled, teeth round. FLOWERS plants unisexual; axillary clusters, minute. SIMILAR SPECIES: Baby's-tears (Pilea depressa) has leaves smaller to 2cm (vs to 5cm), and surface not wrinkled (vs wrinkled). Baby's-tears (Soleirolia soleirolii, Urticaceae) has leaves very small, to 7mm, and leaves alternate (vs. opposite in Pilea) - not presently recorded in the Cook Islands.

Cook Islands Distribution

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Southern Group: Present    Makatea: Present?
RR	MG	AT	MK	MT	AK	PL	TK	MN
P	-	??				-		-

Northern Group:
TN	MH	RK	PK	NS	SW
-	-	-	-	-	-

Pilea nummulariifolia (Sw.)
TAXONOMY: PLANTAE; ANTHOPHYTA (=Angiospermae); MAGNOLIOPSIDA (=Dicotyledones); HAMAMELIDAE; Urticales; URTICACEAE

IDENTIFICATION: Creeping herb. STEMS hairy, thin, 2mm, rooting at nodes. LEAVES opposite, wide-oval to round, to 5cm, surface wrinkled, usually hairy, teeth low and round; stalk to 1cm. FLOWERS plants unisexual (=dioecious); axillary clusters, minute.

Vouchers:
Rarotonga: fieldsight+photo, 'hairy', Avatiu valley roadside last house, 11/2000, ID GM.; fieldsight+photo, 'glossy', Kunzle garden, Tupapa, 11/2000, ID GM. Atiu: fieldsight+photo, 'hairy', Atiu Motel, 11/2000, ID GM.

References:
p.318 Neal - In Gardens of Hawaii
p.872 Hortus 3rd
p.890 Royal Hort. Soc. Index of Garden Plants
p.912 Tropica

Data Update History (information):
zTX, zB02, zM02, zupM03a, zupD03a

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