MIMOSA PUDICA: CHARACTERISTICS, HABITAT, PROPERTIES, CULTIVATION - BIOLOGY - 2025

La Mimosa pudica is an herb vine belonging to the family Leguminosae. It is an annual or perennial plant that is characterized by having compound leaves that are sensitive to the touch. In turn, it is a plant native to tropical America with a pantropical distribution.

Mimosa pudica is commonly known as sleeper, poppy, or sensitive plant, and is a creeping herb, prostrate, and with cylindrical stems. It is a plant that grows about half a meter and spreads up to 0.3 meters.

Source: pixabay.com

Similarly, M. pudica is a plant that develops compound leaves with four pinnae, which can each contain 12 to 25 pairs of leaflets. The leaves of this plant close to the touch, due to a nastic movement, known as thigmonastia.

Mimosa pudica is a plant that often grows in disturbed spaces, along roadsides and trails, and in cultivated soils. It is a native plant of South and Central America, however it has a pantropical distribution, being declared in some cases as an invasive herb.

In contrast, M. pudica is widely used in traditional medicine as a wound healing agent, as a microbial repellent, as an analgesic and anti-inflammatory, as an anticonvulsant, as an antidiarrheal, and as an antimalarial, among others.

However, Mimosa pudica contains mimosine, a non-protein amino acid that, together with a plant enzyme, produces 3,4-dihydroxy pyridone, a powerful goitrogen. This component is toxic and is associated with cases of alopecia.

From a horticultural point of view, Mimosa pudica is an herb that is generally propagated by seeds and its growth is optimal in greenhouses with warm temperatures.

characteristics

Plant

Mimosa pudica is a plant with herbaceous growth, with a woody stem only at the base, annual or perennial, which can measure from 0.15 to 1.0 meters in length and 0.3 meters in width.

Mimosa pudica. H. Zell

Stem

The stem is cylindrical up to 2.5 cm in diameter, with few spines, and is covered with thick and long weak hairs. In addition, the stem has longitudinal grooves, and has a light brown outer surface. While the inner surface is gray.

In turn, the mature stem shows exfoliated cork, with four to eight layers of elongated cells filled with reddish-brown content.

Foliage

The leaves of M. pudica have stipules 5 to 10 mm long, and are composed of 1 or 2 pairs of sessile pinnae. In addition, the leaves are hairy, alternate, and hang from a petiole 1 to 5 cm long.

Each leaf is lanceolate in shape and may contain 10 to 20 pairs of leaflets, each 5 to 10 mm long and 1.5 to 2.5 mm wide. The leaflets are obliquely linear to linear-oblong, and the upper surface and underside lack pubescence.

Mimosa pudica. Frank Vincentz

The eccentric rib is prominent and the margin is setose. While the apex is acute or apiculate.

Root

The root is cylindrical in the shape of a spindle, and has secondary and tertiary roots 2 cm wide, which vary in length. The root surface is more or less rough or wrinkled. In addition, it has a coloration that varies from greyish brown to brown.

Inflorescence

The inflorescence is organized in chapters 1.0 to 1.5 cm in diameter, globose, with 95 to 125 flowers. Each inflorescence is axillary, solitary and racemose. The inflorescence hangs from a peduncle 1 to 3 cm long, pubescent, and without spines.

Inflorescence of Mimosa pudica. Source: wikimedia commons

The bracts, on the other hand, are located 0.5 to 0.75 cm in length from the corolla, are linear to lanceolate, and do not have pubescence.

flowers

The flowers are hermaphroditic, sessile and have a calyx ten times smaller than the corolla. The calyx has four lobes, campanulate, without pubescence, and has a smooth margin.

The corolla, meanwhile, has four free pink lobes, and is devoid of pubescence. On the other hand, the filaments of the stamens are free and lilac in color.

Mimosa pudica flowers. Johan

Fruit

The fruit of Mimosa pudica is a pod 1 to 1.5 cm long and 3 to 4 mm wide. The fruit is straight to slightly curved, compressed between the seeds. In turn, the pods are sessile, lack pubescence, and have an acuminate or cuspid apex.

Seeds

The seeds are 3 to 3.2 cm long and 2.5 to 3 cm wide, with a thickness of 1 to 1.2 mm. In addition, each seed is lenticular, and has an ocher-colored testa, which is smooth or porous.

Taxonomy

- Kingdom: Plantae.

- Subkingdom: Viridiplantae.

- Infra kingdom: Streptophyte.

- Super division: Embriofita.

- Division: Tracheophyte.

- Subdivision: Eufilofitina.

- Infra division: Lignofita.

- Class: Spermatophyte.

- Subclass: Magnoliofita.

- Superorder: Rosanae.

- Order: Fabales.

- Family: Leguminosae.

- Subfamily: Mimosoideae.

- Tribe: Mimoseae.

- Genus: Mimosa.

- Species: Mimosa pudica Linnaeus.

Medicinal properties

Sleeper root has been reported multiple times to be sour, astringent, and refreshing; and that is used in the treatment of leprosy, dysentery, vaginal and uterine complications, inflammations, burns, asthma, fatigue, and blood diseases. This plant is used in the traditional medicine of a large part of the Asian population.

Healing activity

Methanolic extract of stem and root of M. pudica has shown healing properties. This is due in part to the phenolic constituents in both extracts.

Antimicrobial activity

Antagonistic activity of methanolic extracts of dormilone has been reported against Aspergillus fumigatus, Citrobacter divergens, and Klebsiella pneumonia, at different concentrations of the extract. This antagonistic activity is mainly attributed to the presence of terpenoids, flavonoids, alkaloids, saponins, etc.

Analgesic and anti-inflammatory activity

The ethanolic extract of Mimosa pudica leaves at doses of 200 and 400 mg / kg has shown negative effects against edema, and analgesic effects. According to some researchers this is due to certain flavonoids.

Anticonvulsant

The infusion of leaves of M. pudica placed intraperitoneally, has shown antagonistic effects against inducers of convulsions in rats.

Antidiarrheal activity

Ethanolic extracts of Mimosa pudica leaves have shown inhibitory effects against diarrhea-inducing drugs in laboratory rats. According to the researchers, this is largely due to the tannins and flavonoids present in the extracts.

Against infertility

Orally administered root system extracts prolongs the estrous cycle time in laboratory rats. In addition, it has been shown under laboratory conditions that root extract is related to gonadotropin levels.

Antioxidant activity

Methanolic extract from aerial parts of M. pudica has shown moderate antioxidant activity compared to ascorbic acid.

Antimalarial activity

Ethanolic extract of nightshade leaves have shown antagonistic activity, in vitro, against Plasmodium berghei. According to the researchers, this is due to constituents such as terpenoids, flavonoids, and alkaloids.

Toxicity

Mimosin is a non-protein amino acid found in Mimosa pudica and other plants of the Mimosoideae subfamily. This component, plus an enzyme from plant tissue, produces 3,4-dihydroxy pyridone (3,4-DHP), a powerful goitrogen, which is transformed, by mechanical effects, into 2,3-DHP.

The mimosine; 3,4-DHP; and 2,3-DHP are toxic, and are associated with various diseases in domestic animals. In ruminants, mimosine causes hair loss and inhibits the absorption of iodine by the thyroid.

Although Mimosa pudica is toxic to most poultry animals, in humans it is classified as a non-poisonous herb.

Cultivation and care

Although Mimosa pudica is a ruderal plant, from a horticultural perspective several cares must be taken into account during the establishment and growth of this herb.

Source: pixabay.com

What substrate mix to use?

Mimosa pudica requires soils that can hold enough water to stay moist, while providing good aeration and drainage. Thus, root rot caused in highly compact soils is avoided.

In this case it is recommended to make a mixture of two parts of loamy soil, two parts of peat, and one part of sand or perlite.

What pot to use?

It is necessary to use pots with holes in the bottom, to be able to maintain the drainage in the ground. Mimosa pudica does best when its roots are somewhat confined, so it is advisable to choose a pot according to the size of the plant. 8 cm pots are used for seedlings, while 13 cm pots are used for adult plants.

illumination

The sleeper constantly needs bright light. For good results, it is preferable to place it in sunny places. If there is no direct sunlight, it is recommended to put the plants under lamps that emit 300 photons of light.

Temperature range

Mimosa pudica requires temperatures in the range of 16 to 30 ͒ C to germinate and have optimal growth.

Water

Sleeper does well in constantly moist soils. It is not advisable to keep the substrate flooded or very dry. The amount of water depends on the size of the plant and the environmental conditions.

Fertilization

Like other members of the Leguminosae family, Mimosa pudica is a plant that establishes symbiotic relationships with nitrogen-fixing soil bacteria, mainly of the Rhizobium genus. As a consequence, this herb tends to grow in nitrogen-poor soils in nature.

However, under controlled conditions, this plant requires half as much commercial fertilizer, and it requires a high content of potassium, since this ion is involved in the nastic movement of the leaves.

References

1. Ahmad, H., Sehgal, S., Mishra, A., Gupta, R. 2012. Mimosa pudica L. (Laajvanti): An overview. Pharmacognosy Reviews, 6 (12), 115–124. doi: 10.4103 / 0973-7847.99945
2. Global Invasive Species Database. (2019). Species profile: Mimosa pudica. Taken from: iucngisd.org
3. Global Invasive Species Database. (2010). Mimosa pudica (herb). Taken from: issg.org
4. Joseph, B., George, J., Mohan, J. 2013. Pharmacology and traditional uses of Mimosa pudica. International Journal of Pharmaceutical Sciences and Drug Research, 5 (2): 41-44.
5. Martínez-Bernal, A., Grether, R., González-Amaro, RM 2008. Flora of Veracruz: Leguminosae I, Mimosoideae: Mimosa. Institute of Ecology, Veracruz, Mexico.
6. Science Direct. (2018). Mimosa pudica - an overview. Taken from: sciencedirect.com
7. Simon, MF, Grether, R., De Queiroz, LP, Särkinen, TE, Dutra, VF, Hughes, CE 2011. The evolutionary history of Mimosa (Leguminosae): toward a phylogeny of the sensitive plants. American Journal of Botany, 98 (7): 1201–1221.
8. Smart Garden. (2018). How To Care For A Sensitive Plant (Mimosa pudica). Taken from: smartgardenguide.com.
9. The Taxonomicon. (2004-2019). Taxon: Species Mimosa pudica Linnaeus (plant). Taken from: taxonomicon.taxonomy.nl
10. Vejayan, J., Jamunaa, A., Halijah, I., Ambu, S. 2016. Adverse Effects of Tannin Contained in Mimosa pudica Root Extract. Journal of Applied Sciences, 16: 477-483.