Gynura procumbens – Herb Garden

Gynura procumbens is a perennial herbaceous, edible, medicinal houseplant. It is a twining vine, smooth except for the peduncles. Leaves are ovate-elliptic or lanceolate, 1.4 to 3.2 inches long, and 0.8 to 3.5 centimeters wide. The stems are fleshy, and have purple or have purple spots. Blossoming heads are panicled, narrow, yellow, and 1 to 1.5 centimeters long. Involucral bracts are smooth and up to 6 millimeters long. Achenes are very small and smooth, with very close and slender ribs. The leaves and young stems of this plant can be eaten raw or can be used as a vegetable. It is utilized as anti-hypertensive, glucose-lowering, anti-inflammatory, and source of proteins and peroxidase.

Scientific Name: Gynura procumbens
Common Name: Sambung Nyawa, longevity spinach.

How to grow and maintain Gynura procumbens:

Light:
It thrives well in full sun or part shade. Some direct morning sunlight is fine, but avoid strong summer sunlight which can scorch its leaves.

Soil:
It grows well in rich, moist but well-drained soil.

Temperature:
It prefers normal room temperatures between 60 – 75°F / 16°C – 24°C.

Water:
Water moderately but consistently during the growing season, Keep the soil moist but not soggy. Allow the top one inch of soil to dry out between waterings. Reduce watering during the winter season.

Fertilizer:
Fertilize your plant monthly from spring to fall with the diluted liquid fertilizer. Do not fertilize during the winter season.

Propagation:
It can be easily propagated by stem cutting or by seed. Take a 6 to 8 inches cuttings off of an established plant, remove and eat most of the leaves, place the cuttings in a cup of water till they root, then pot them up with a nice soil mix.

Pruning:
It is best to cut back the stems pull the leaves off those cut stems rather than just pulling the leaves off the
plant.

Pests and Diseases:
Longevity spinach is relatively pest-free. Whiteflies and mites may attack during the heat of summer and watch for leaf miner or mealy bug or aphid.

Advantages of Gynura procumbens:

• Sambung Nyawa leaves extract to have good properties for contrasting diabetes, by improving insulin sensibility and inhibit gluconeogenesis in the liver.
• It also lowers blood cholesterol and triglycerides, lowers blood pressure, and has anti-inflammatory and antiviral activity.
• It protects against ulcers and helps heal existing lesions and protects kidney cells from kidney disease.
• It prevents damage caused by UV light exposure and protects from liver damage caused by free radicals that are released in the liver by environmental toxin exposure.