Aerva javanica

Aerva j. Is perennial bush growing up to 1m high. Stems are erect, base is woody, branched covered with fine and tiny hairs. Alternate leaves arrangement, greyish-green in colour, on very short stalks, shape is lance-shaped to oblong 1.0 – 1.5 x 4.5 – 5.0cm, with clear veins and midrib on underside, top surface covered with matted hair. Flowers five tepals on 5 – 10cm long spikes from the leaf nodes. Buds pinkish but opened flowers white. Leaf-like structures just below flowers (bracts) covered with long white hairs that become more and more woolly as season progresses. Fruits inside woolly covering, containing one small seed, 0.1 x 0.15 cm, black or brown, shiny. Flowering throughout the year except Nov. – Dec