Other popular names:
Yapana; Liapana; Lirpana; Irpana; Diapana, Tea herb,
Herb against fever or Vulnerary herb in Martinique and Guadeloupe.

Scientific name:
Ayapana triplinervis (or Eupatorium triplinervis).

Translation :
Eupatorium = Eupatorium, old name given to Agrimony in memory of
Mithridates Eupator, who is said to have used this plant to treat his liver
triplinervis = three-ribbed.

Family :
Asteraceae (= Compositae).

Nature :
Herbaceous plant.

Description :
Perennial herb, 10 to 20 cm high, which grows in tufts, with purplish reddish stems with a characteristic odor. Its leaves are green, with smooth edges, sessile, triplinear (have 3 main subparallel green, reddish or purplish veins and start above the base of the blade). Its flowers are capitula with small pale pink flowers. Confusions with the brown Ayapana or Yapana bois, a subshrub (and therefore more bushy appearance) with bilabiate flowers (with two lips), and with the Jouvence de l'abbé Soury or false Ayapana, which has serrated leaves, white capitula, and which has become a very invasive plant.

Presence on the island:
Acclimatized.

Location :
Below 1000 meters, in gardens (exclusively cultivated).

Flowering period:
September - October.

Parts used:
Leaves.

Harvest period:
All year round.

Plantation:
By cuttings. Short-cycle species.

History
Native to South America (Brazil), and now cultivated throughout the tropical world. According to Bory de Saint-Vincent, this herb was brought back from Brazil to Reunion Island, at the very end of the 18th century, by a Danish merchant captain. The Brazilian monks had praised it to him as a vulnerary which, "taken as a tea, is pleasant and stomachic". The species is not listed in the French pharmacopoeia, its status is therefore not regulated.

Use :
A medicinal plant

Traditional uses:
- Against digestive ailments (nausea, vomiting, indigestion, intestinal burning, colic, diarrhea, flatulence, etc.). Internally (infusion of fresh leaves at the end of a meal).
- Against flu, colds and fever. Internally (infusion of the leaves with possibly lemongrass or lemon verbena for taste).
- To treat the liver. Internally (leaf juice combined with olive oil, in the morning on an empty stomach).
- Against vomiting. Internally (infusion of leaves, accompanied by Peppermint leaves).
- Against diarrhea. Internally (juice extracted from the whole crushed plant).
- Against insomnia, by its sedative action. Internally (infusion of the leaves).
- In the Antilles, against anemia. Internally (infusion of fresh leaves).
- In the Antilles, against injuries, dislocations and contusions. Externally (leaves macerated in rum as dressings).
- In Madagascar, against cholera.
- In India, as a hemostatic (stops bleeding), which is surprising given the presence of coumarin (blood thinner and anticoagulant). Externally (application of leaf decoction).
- In India, against seasonal illnesses, as a stimulant, tonic and diaphoretic (facilitates perspiration). Internally (infusion of the leaves).
- In India, as a cardiac stimulant. Internally (aqueous extract of the dried leaves).

Contraindications:
Not recommended for children, due to the significant presence of coumarin.
Do not take in case of biliary obstruction.

Other uses:
In cosmetics, Ayapana is known as a good regenerator for skin and hair.

- Image and content sources: book Plants and People