Scientific Name: Portulaca oleracea

Common Name: common purslane

Family Classification (Clade): Eudicots

Family: Portulacaceae

Form Description: Annual herb with purplish, spreading stems.

Flowers: Yellow flowers, with 4-6 petals joined at the base, may be solitary or a few together.

Fruit: Woody capsule – seeds are black and shiny.

Municipality
Break O’DayCentral HighlandsLauncestonNorthern Midlands
Plant Communities
No data available for this species
Habitat Notes

Locally common as a weed in cultivated ground; prominent on floodplains.

Site Tolerance

Moist

Soil Tolerance

Fertile, Loam, Poorly-drained, Well-drained

General Notes

All parts of the plant are edible and may be eaten raw or cooked; frequently eaten by Aboriginal people, especially the seeds.

Propagation Calendar

  • Flowering Month
    Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec
  • Seed Collecting Month
    Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec
  • Sowing Month
    Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec
  • Cutting Month
    Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec
Propagation Method
SeedCuttings

Seed Information

Seed Collection

May be grown from seed.

Seed Treatment Method

Standard Scatter seed thinly on to damp potting mix. Hold seed in place by covering with more potting mix to approximately the depth of the seed size.

Cutting & Division Information

Can be grown from cuttings.