Japanese name: カタバミ（片喰） Scientific name:Oxalis corniculata
[Overview]
A perennial commonly seen along roadsides and on vacant lots.
It has a thick root that extends vertically underground.
The stem branches freely, and the lower part creeps along the ground.
The leaves are ternately compound, with heart-shaped leaflets.
The leaflets close and droop at night and in cold temperatures.
There are distinct ear-shaped stipules.
The flowers are yellow, 5-petaled, borne 1–8 in an umbel, and about 0.8 cm across.
The flowers open in fine weather and close when the light weakens.
The fruit is a cylindrical capsule covered all over with white hairs, and it scatters its seeds when ripe.
[Uses]
The whole plant is used as an external medicine for insect bites and the like.
