Gotu kola - Asiatic pennywort - Centella asiatica

[MaLiorzh]

Yet another one of my exotic herb queries. Has anybody tried Gotu kola? I've got a plant outside on the terrace in direct sunlight at the moment with daytime temperatures around 25°C. I read that it's semi-aquatic so I have it in a pot standing in a dish of rain water. I also read that given the right conditions it's rampant. Mine doesn't appear so 'rampant' at the moment so perhaps something needs to be changed.

[imafan26]

Gotu kola likes damp places and will grow as a ground cover where it is humid and gets regular water in shade and in sun. It creeps by rhizomes along the ground and roots shallowly. It propagates by cuttings. I don't know about it being semi-aquatic. As far as I know it does not grow in water like watercress.

Gotu Kola is bitter if you eat it. It is a medicinal plant and many of them are. The most common use of gotu kola that I know of is as a poultice for minor wounds and skin ulcers. It also has rejuvenating properties that is supposed to help with things like arthritis and aging. The latter part, I don't know about, I think genetics and activity plays a large part in that as well.

https://herbsarespecial.com.au/plant-in ... gotu-kola/

[MaLiorzh]

Oh dear! Where to start? Not looking to good for my gotu kola. I brought it inside when the temperature outside started dropping below 10°C at night. Since then things have just gone from bad to worse. All the leaves died one after the other and now all that's left in the pot is one tiny self-seeded seedling that sprouted but doesn't seem to be growing in any hurry. I kept it humid and put the plant in a south facing window in my kitchen - so not too much central heating and as much sun as I can give it. I used a basic peat based compost. Is GK sensitive to soil conditions, nutrient levels and pH? Do you think it might grow back again from the roots?