Herb Library
Browse our comprehensive collection of traditional medicinal plants and herbal remedies.
Showing Herbs in Category: Leaves
Bulath (Piper betle): The Betel Leaf, Honoured Guest and Misunderstood Medicine
(Piper betle)
No plant is woven deeper into Sri Lankan life than bulath (Piper betle). A sheaf of forty betel leav
Read More →Sera (Cymbopogon citratus): Lemongrass, Citral and a Calming Cup
(Cymbopogon citratus)
Sera (Cymbopogon citratus) is the stalk you bruise and drop into a curry, and the tea you make when
Read More →Nidikumba (Mimosa pudica): The Touch-Me-Not That Folds Away
(Mimosa pudica)
Nidikumba (Mimosa pudica) is the plant every Sri Lankan child has poked. Touch a leaf and it folds s
Read More →Karal Heba (Achyranthes aspera): Apamarga, the Backward-Pointing Weed
(Achyranthes aspera)
Karal Heba (Achyranthes aspera) is the weed whose seeds you carry home on your trousers. Its flower
Read More →Wara (Calotropis gigantea): The Crown Flower and Its Poison
(Calotropis gigantea)
Wara (Calotropis gigantea) grows where almost nothing else bothers to — sand, waste ground, the edge
Read More →Aruda (Ruta graveolens): Rue — Potent, Traditional, and Not for Children
(Ruta graveolens)
Aruda (Ruta graveolens) sits in pots outside Sri Lankan homes and in the pages of Sri Lankan paediat
Read More →Walkoththamalli (Scoparia dulcis): Sweet Broomweed and Blood Sugar
(Scoparia dulcis)
Walkoththamalli (Scoparia dulcis) is a weed with a sweet name and a sweet taste — dulcis means sweet
Read More →Katu Karandu (Barleria prionitis): The Porcupine Flower for Gums
(Barleria prionitis)
Katu Karandu (Barleria prionitis) defends itself with pale spines at every leaf joint — the porcupin
Read More →Wathusudda (Tabernaemontana divaricata): Crape Jasmine, and the Eye Warning
(Tabernaemontana divaricata)
Wathusudda (Tabernaemontana divaricata) stands in more Sri Lankan gardens than almost any other shru
Read More →Heen Bopath (Biophytum sensitivum): The Miniature Tree That Folds
(Biophytum sensitivum)
Heen Bopath (Biophytum sensitivum) is one of the loveliest plants in Sri Lanka and one of the smalle
Read More →Wel Kahambiliya (Tragia involucrata): The Climbing Nettle
(Tragia involucrata)
Wel Kahambiliya (Tragia involucrata) announces itself. Brush past it and the sting arrives instantly
Read More →Heen Pitiyawakka (Phyllanthus): Stonebreaker, and What Hepatitis B Actually Needs
(Phyllanthus debilis)
Heen Pitiyawakka (Phyllanthus debilis, and its close relatives P. niruri and P. amarus) is a weed th
Read More →