Pilea microphylla
Pilea microphylla, also known as angeloweed, artillery plant, joypowder plant, or brilhantina, is an annual plant native to Florida, Mexico, the West Indies, and tropical Central and Southern America. In the southern part of México, specifically Campeche and Mérida, the local name is frescura. The plant belongs to the family Urticaceae. It has light green, almost succulent, stems and tiny leaves. It is grown as a ground cover in many areas.
Description
Pilea microphylla is an annual or short-lived perennial. It grows low or creeping on the ground. It is monoecious with smooth, translucent light-green, succulent-like and highly-branching stems. The leaves are oval-shaped, narrowing to a point at the tips, with a short petiole. They are tiny, averaging at long, and wide. The leaves grow in asymmetric pairs, with one leaf smaller than the other. Almost all leaves have three primary veins originating from the base. The whitish to greenish flowers are also tiny, averaging at, with male flowers being larger than female flowers. It flowers year-round.The common names of the plant comes from the fact that the stamens of the male flowers explosively eject pollen grains during anthesis. This is due to the sudden straightening of the stamens.