Ampalaya

Scientific names
Cucumis argyl H. Lev.
Cucumis intermedius M. Roem.
Momordica charantia Linn.
Momordica chinensis Spreng
Momordica elegans Salisb.
Momordica indica L.
Momordica muricata Willd.
Momordica sinensis Spreng.
Momordica thollonii Cogn.
Sicyos fauriei H.Lév.
Common names:
African cucumber (Engl.)
Balsam apple (Engl.)
Balsam pear (Engl.)
Bitter cucumber (Engl.)
Bitter gourd (Engl.)
Bitter melon (Engl.)
Tuberculated momordica (Engl.)
Ampalaya is a climbing vine, nearly or quite smooth, annual vine. Tendrils are simple, up to
20 centimeters long. Leaves are 2.5 to 10 centimeters in diameter, cut nearly to the base into
5 to 7 lobes, oblong-ovate, variously toothed, and heart-shaped at the base. Male flower is
about 12 millimeters long, and is peduncled, with a rounded, green, and about 1 centimeter
long bract approximately at the middle. Female flower is yellow flower, about 15 millimeters
long, long-stalked with pair of small leaflike bracts at middle or toward base of stalk. Fruit, in
cultivated form, is green, fleshy, oblong, cylindric, 15 to 25 centimeters long, pointed at both
ends, ribbed and wrinkled, bursting when mature to release seeds; in wild forms, ovoid,
about 2 to 4 centimeters long. Seeds are oblong, compressed 10 to 13 millimeters long, and
corrugated on the margins.
Bawang
Scientific names:
Allium controversum Schrad. ex Willd.
Allium longicuspis Regel
Allium ophioscorodon Link
Allium pekinense Prokhanov
Allium sativum Linn.
Porum ophioscorodon (Link) Rchb.
Common names:
Common garlic (Engl.)
Garlic (Engl.)
Nectar of the Gods (Engl.)
Poor Man's Treacle (Engl.)
Stinking Rose (Engl.)

Bawang is a low herb, 30 to 60 centimeters high. True stem is much reduced. Bulbs are
broadly ovoid, 2 to 4 centimeters in diameter, consisting of several, densely crowded, angular
and truncated tubers. Leaves are linear and flat. Umbels are globose, many flowered. Sepals
are oblong, greenish white, slightly tinged with purple. Stamens are not exerted from the
perianth.
Bayabas

Scientific names
Guajava pumila (Vahl.) Kuntze
Guajava pyrifera (L.) Kuntze
Myrtus guajava (L.) Kuntze
Psidium angustifolium Lam.
Psidium cujavillus Burm.f.
Psidium cujavus L
Psidium fragrans Macfad.
Psidium guajava Linn.

Common names:
Guava (Engl.)
Round guava (Engl.)
Tropical guava (Engl.)

Bayabas is a somewhat hairy plant reaching a height of 8 meters. Young branches are 4-
angled. Leaves are opposite, oblong to elliptic, and 5 to 1 centimeters long, the apex being
pointed, and the base usually rounded. Peduncles are 1- to 3-flowered. Flowers are white, 3
to 3.5 centimeters across, with in-curved petals, coming out solitary or two to three in the
leaf axils. Numerous stamens form the attractive part of the flower. Inferior ovaries develop
into round or obovoid green fruits 4 to 9 centimeters long, turning yellow on ripening and
have edible, aromatic, seedy pulp.
Lagundi

Scientific names:
Agnus-castus incisa (Lam.)
Agnus-castus negundo (L.)
Vitex arborea Desf.
Vitex chinensis Mill.
Vitex elmeri Moldenke
Vitex gracilis Salisb.
Vitex incisa Lam.
Vitex laciniata Schauer
Vitex negundo Linn.

Common names
Chaste tree (Engl.)
Chinese chastetree (Engl.)
Cut leaf vitex (Engl.)
Five-leaved chaste tree (Engl.)

Lagundi is an erect, branched tree or shrub, 2 to 5 meters high. Leaves are usually 5-foliate,
rarely with 3 leaflets only, and palmately arranged. Leaflets are lanceolate, entire, 4 to 10
centimeters long, slightly hairy beneath, and pointed at both ends, the middle leaflets being
larger than the others, and distinctly stalked. Flowers are numerous, blue to lavender, 6 to 7
millimeters long, borne in terminal inflorescences (panicles) 10 to 20 centimeters long. Calyx
is hairy, and 5-toothed. Corolla is densely hairy in the throat, and the middle lobe of the
lower lip is longest. Fruit is a succulent drupe, globose, black when ripe, about 4 millimeters
in diameter.
Niog-niogan

Scientific names
Combretum indicum (L.) DeFilipps

Common names
Burma Creeper (Engl.)
Chinese honeysuckle (Engl.)
Liane Vermifuge (Engl.)
Rangoon creeper (Engl.)
Yesterday, today, and tomorrow (Engl.)

Niog-niogan is a large climbing, woody shrub reaching a length of 2 to 8 meters. Brown hairs
give the younger parts a rusty appearance. Leaves are oblong to elliptic, opposite, 7 to 15
centimeters long, rounded at the base and pointed at the tip. Flowers are fragrant, tubular,
showy, first white, then becoming red, reddish-purple or orange, exhibiting the range of
colors in clusters, on the same flower stalk. Fruit is narrowly ellipsoid, 2.5 to 3 centimeters
long, with five, sharp, longitudinal angles or wings. Seeds are pentagonal and black.
Ilang-ilang gubat

Scientific names
Desmos cochinchinensis Lour.

Common names
Dwarf ylang-ylang shrub (Engl.)

Ilang-ilang gubat is a rather small erect or climbing shrub, 1.5 to 3 meters height. Leaves are
oblong to oblong-ovate, 8 to 15 centimeters long, pointed at the tip and rounded at the base,
and nearly smooth. Flowers are yellowish white, solitary on a 2- to 5-centimeter long
peduncle, borne opposite or nearly opposite to leaflets. Calyx are 3, ovate, 3 to 5 millimeters
long. Corolla are 6, fixed, arranged in 2 whorls, oblong or oblong-lanceolate, 3 to 4
centimeters long, the outer whorl bigger than the inner one; stamens numerous. Peduncle
extra-axillary, about 5 centimeters long, with one flower. Sepals are ovate-lanceolate, about
1.5 centimeters long. Petals are somewhat hairy, yellow, fragrant, 4 to 5 centimeters long.
Fruits are dehiscent, peduncled, arranged in dense clusters, 2 to 5 centimeters long, 1 to 7
seeded.
Pansit-pansitan

Scientific names
Micropiper pellucidum (L.) Miq.
Peperomia concinna (Haw.) A. Dietr.
Peperomia knoblecheriana Schott
Peperomia pellucida (L.) Kunth

Common names
Clear weed (Engl.)
Pepper-elder (Engl.)
Rat-ear (Engl.)
Shiny bush (Engl.)
Silver bush (Engl.)

Pansit-pansitan is an erect, branched, annual herb, shallow rooted, reaching up to 40

centimeters high, with very succulent stems. Stems are round, often about 5 millimeters
thick. Leaves are alternate, heart-shaped and turgid, as transparent and smooth as candle
wax. Spikes are green, erect, very slender, 1 to 6 centimeters long. Tiny dot-like flowers
scattered along solitary and leaf-opposed stalk (spike); naked; maturing gradually from the
base to the tip; turning brown when ripe.
Sambong

Scientific names
Baccharis balsamifera Stokes
Baccharis gratissima Blume ex DC.
Baccharis sativa Lour.
Blumea appendiculata DC.
Blumea balsamifera (Linn.) DC.

Common names
Blumea camphor (Engl.)
Buffalo-ear (Engl.)
Ngai camphor (Engl.)

Sambong is a half woody, strongly aromatic shrub, densely and softly hairy, 1 to 4 meters
high. Stems grow up to 2.5 centimeters in diameter. Leaves are simple, alternate, elliptic- to
oblong-lanceolate, 7 to 20 centimeters long, toothed at the margins, pointed or blunt at the
tip, narrowing to a short petiole which are often auricled or appendaged. Flowering heads are
stalked, yellow and numerous, 6 to 7 millimeters long, and borne on branches of a terminal,
spreading or pyramidal leafy panicle. Discoid flowers are of two types: peripheral ones tiny,
more numerous, with tubular corolla; central flowers few, large with campanulate corolla.
Involucral bracts are green, narrow and hairy. Anther cells tailed at base. Fruits are achenes,
dry, 1-seeded, 10-ribbed, hairy at top.
Yerba Buena
Scientific names
Mentha agrestis Sole
Mentha albae-carolinae Heinr.Braun
Mentha alberti Sennen
Mentha allionii Boreau
Mentha angustifolia Schreb.
Mentha anomala Hérib.
Mentha approximata (Wirtg.)
Mentha arenaria Topitz
Mentha arguta Opiz
Mentha argutissima Borbás & Heinr.Braun
Mentha arvensis L.

Common names
American wild mint (Engl.)
Mentha angustifolia Schreb. Brook mint (Engl.)
Mentha anomala Hérib. Corn mint (Engl.)
Mentha approximata (Wirtg.) Strail Field mint (Engl.)
Mentha arenaria Topitz Marsh mint (English)
Mentha arguta Opiz Peppermint (Engl.)
Mentha argutissima Borbás & Heinr.Braun Tule mind (Engl.)
Mentha arvensis L. Wild mint (Engl.)

Hierba buena is a prostrate, smooth , much-branched, usually purplish, strongly aromatic

herb, with stems growing up to 40 centimeters long, with ultimate ascending terminal
branches. Leaves are elliptic to oblong-ovate, 1.5 to 4 centimeters long, short-stalked with
toothed margins, and rounded or blunt tipped. Flowers are hairy and purplish to bluish,
borne in axillary head-like whorls. Calyx teeth are triangular or lanceolate and hairy; the
corolla is also hairy.