Hygrophila pogonocalyx Hayata (Da-Ann Hygrophila)

Family acanthaceae

A perennial herb which can grow up to 100 centimeters, the Hygrophila pogonocalyx Hayata (Da-Ann Hygrophila) has a cubic and erect stem, with dark spots and hairy internodes. With opposite leaves shooting from the internodes, the whole plant looks rather like a towering skyscraper. The lanceolate leaves, 6 to 12 centimeters in length, have white hairs, mostly entire blunt tips, and short petioles, except that some leaves have shallow toothed edges. From leaf axils on the internodes shoot out purple red small flowers with tubularly 2-cleft-lip corollas. The upper has 2-lobed erect lips, while the lower has two slightly lobed lips, growing in clusters or around the cubic stem. Because of the destruction of its habitation, the Da-Ann Hygrophila was once an endangered species. Luckily, after the recent repopulation, it gets a chance to prosper.