English: Yellow velvetleaf; Sawah flower rush; Sawah lettuce.
Region: Mexico, Central America, South America, Cuba, Haiti, Dominican Republic; naturalized in Asia, India, Sri Lanka, Cambodia, Burma, Thailand, Vietnam, Indonesia, Malaysia and southern China.
Botany: aquatic herb, 50 cm tall; habitat not very deep stagnant fresh water, in swampy areas; growing in clumps; stems hollow, glabrous; leaves triangular-shaped, glabrous; inflorescences very characteristic; flowers three-lobed, yellow, ± 1.5 cm in diameter; fruits spherical; seeds spread by currents.
Use: important vegetable, central flower stalk and the leaves, in soups, curries, salads, in Indonesia, Philippines, Vietnam, Laos, Thailand, India; poor people's food, emergency food.