《中国植物志》|| 苋科 AMARANTHACEAE ||莲子草属 Alternanthera Forsk. ||喜旱莲子草 Alternanthera philoxeroides (Mart.) Griseb.

3.喜旱莲子草 空心苋（福建）、水蕹菜、革命草（江苏）、水花生（北京）图版51: 5-8
Alternanthera philoxeroides (Mart.) Griseb. Gott. Abh. 24: 36. 1879; O. Ktze. Rev. Gen. 2: 540. 1891; Backer in Van Steenis, Fl. Males. ser. 1, 4: 93. 1949; 华东水生维管束植物39. f. 46. 1952;江苏南部种子植物手册251. f. 394. 1959; 中国高等植物图鉴1: 610. f. 1219. 1972. ——Cucholzia philoxeroides Mart. in Nov. Act. Phys.-Med. Acad. Caes.-Leop. Carol. Nat. Curios. 13 (1): 107. 1825.
多年生草本；茎基部匍匐，上部上升，管状，不明显4棱，长55-120厘米，具分枝，幼茎及叶腋有白色或锈色柔毛，茎老时无毛，仅在两侧纵沟内保留。叶片矩圆形、矩圆状倒卵形或倒卵状披针形，长2.5-5厘米，宽7-20毫米，顶端急尖或圆钝，具短尖，基部渐狭，全缘，两面无毛或上面有贴生毛及缘毛，下面有颗粒状突起；叶柄长3-10毫米，无毛或微有柔毛。花密生，成具总花梗的头状花序，单生在叶腋，球形，直径8-15毫米；苞片及小苞片白色，顶端渐尖，具1脉; 苞片卵形，长2-2.5毫米，小苞片披针形，长2毫米；花被片矩圆形，长5-6毫米，白色，光亮，无毛，顶端急尖，背部侧扁；雄蕊花丝长2.5-3毫米，基部连合成杯状; 退化雄蕊矩圆状条形，和雄蕊约等长，顶端裂成窄条；子房倒卵形，具短柄，背面侧扁，顶端圆形。果实未见。花期5-10月。
原产巴西，我国引种于北京、江苏、浙江、江西、湖南、福建，后逸为野生。生在池沼、水沟内。
全草入药，有清热利水、凉血解毒作用; 可作饲料。

《云南植物志》|| 苋科 Amaranthaceae nom. conserv. ||莲子草属 Alternanthera Forssk. ||喜旱莲子草 Alternanthera philoxeroides (Mart.) Griseb.

4. 喜旱莲子草（中国植物志）
空心苋（福建），水蕹菜、革命草（江苏），水花生（北京）
Alternanthera philoxeroides (Mart.) Griseb. (1879); Backer in van Steenis (1949); 华东水生维管束植物手册 (1952); 图鉴 (1972)*; 台湾植物志 (1976); 二版 (1996); 中国植物志 (1979)*; 云南种子植物名录 (1984).
Bucholzia philoxeroides Mart. (1825).
多年生草本；茎管状，匍匐，具4棱，长55—120厘米，嫩茎部分具微柔毛，老时近无毛。叶纸质，矩圆形或倒卵状披针形，长3—5厘米，宽7—20毫米，顶端急尖或圆钝，具芒尖，基部渐狭，全缘，两面无毛或上面有贴生毛及缘毛，下面有颗粒状突起；叶柄长3—10毫米，近无毛。头状花序单生于叶腋，花密集、近球形；苞片及小苞片白色，顶端渐尖；苞片卵形，长2—3毫米，小苞片披针形，长2毫米；花被片矩圆形，长5—6毫米，白色，薄膜质，光亮，无毛，顶端急尖，背部压扁；花丝长3毫米，基部连合成杯状；退化雄蕊矩圆状条形，顶端撕裂状；子房倒卵形，具短柄，背面压扁，顶端圆形。果实不发育。花期4—11月。
昆明、彝良、江川、澂江逸为野生。原产巴西。北京、重庆、江苏、浙江、江西、湖南、福建逸为野生杂草。生于半沼泽、水池内，伴可饲鱼，但壅塞沟泽，恶性不减于凤眼莲。
全草有清热、凉血、利尿、解毒的功效。局部已制成成药。

《Flora of North America》|| Amaranthaceae || Alternanthera || Alternanthera philoxeroides

3. Alternanthera philoxeroides (Martius) Grisebach, Abh. Königl. Ges. Wiss. Göttingen. 24: 36. 1879.

Alligatorweed

Bucholzia philoxeroides Martius, Beitr. Amarantac., 107. 1825; Achyranthes philoxeroides (Martius) Standley

Herbs, perennial, aquatic to semiterrestrial, stoloniferous, to 50 dm. Stems prostrate, forming mats, often fistulose, glabrous. Leaves sessile; blade narrowly elliptic, elliptic, or oblanceolate, 3.5-7.1 × 0.5-2 cm, herbaceous, apex acute to obtuse, glabrous. Inflorescences terminal and axillary, pedunculate; heads white, globose, 1.4-1.7 cm diam.; bracts not keeled, less than ¹/2 as long as tepals. Flowers: tepals monomorphic, white, lanceolate or oblong, 6 mm, apex acute, glabrous; stamens 5; pseudostaminodes ligulate. Utricles not seen. Seeds not seen.

Flowering early spring-summer. Ponds, ditches, streams, bayous; 0-200 m; introduced; Ala., Ark., Calif., Fla., Ga., Ill., Ky., La., Miss., N.C., S.C., Tenn., Tex., Va.; West Indies; native to South America.

Alternanthera philoxerioides is said to reproduce only vegetatively in North America. I have seen no fruit or seed.

《Flora of China》|| Amaranthaceae || Alternanthera ||喜旱莲子草 Alternanthera philoxeroides

5. Alternanthera philoxeroides (C. Martius) Grisebach, Abh. Königl. Ges. Wiss. Göttingen. 24: 36. 1879.

喜旱莲子草 xi han lian zi cao

Bucholzia philoxeroides C. Martius, Nov. Actorum Acad. Caes. Leop.-Carol. Nat. Cur. 13(1): 107. 1825; Achyranthes philoxeroides (C. Martius) Standley; Telanthera philoxeroides (C. Martius) Moquin-Tandon.

Herbs perennial. Stem ascending from a creeping base, 55-120 cm, branched; young stem and leaf axil white hairy; old ones glabrous. Petiole 3-10 mm, glabrous or slightly hairy; leaf blade oblong, oblong-obovate, or ovate-lanceolate, 2.5-5 × 0.7-2 cm, glabrous or ciliate, adaxially muricate, base attenuate, margin entire, apex acute or obtuse, with a mucro. Heads with a peduncle, solitary at leaf axil, globose, 0.8-1.5 cm in diam. Bracts and bracteoles white, 1-veined, apex acuminate; bracts ovate, 2-2.5 mm; bracteoles lanceolate, ca. 2 mm. Tepals white, shiny, oblong, 5-6 mm, glabrous, apex acute. Filaments 2.5-3 mm, connate into a cup at base; pseudostaminodes oblong-linear, ca. as long as stamens. Ovary obovoid, compressed, with short stalk. Fruit not known. Fl. May-Oct. 2n = 100*.

Cultivated, waste places. Beijing, Fujian, Guangxi, Hebei, Hubei, Hunan, Jiangsu, Jiangxi, Sichuan, Taiwan, Zhejiang [native to South America (Brazil)].