# Platostoma

Platostoma is a genus of flowering plants in the mint family, Lamiaceae, first described as a genus in 1818. It is native to tropical parts of Africa, southern Asia, Papuasia, and Australia. Mesona and Acrocephalus has been known as its synonyms.
A widely consumed species in this genus is Platostoma palustre (synonyms Mesona chinensis, M. elegans, and M. procumbens), or xiancao (仙草) in Mandarin, sian-chháu (仙草) in Taiwanese, leung fun cho (涼粉草) in Cantonese, sương sáo in Vietnamese, and cincau in Indonesian and Malay. It is eaten as a snack in drinks, or set as a gel and served as a grass jelly.
In Indonesia the Platostoma palustre leaf is used to make a black jelly; there is also an instant powder variety available.

## Species

51 species are accepted.
* Platostoma africanum P.Beauv — tropical Africa, southern India, Lesser Sunda Islands in Indonesia
* Platostoma albiflorum Suddee, A.J.Paton & J.Parn. – Thailand
* Platostoma annamense (G.Taylor) A.J.Paton — Vietnam, Thailand, Cambodia
* Platostoma axillaris (Benth.) A.J.Paton — Assam
* Platostoma becquerelii Suddee & A.J.Paton — Cambodia
* Platostoma busbanianum Suddee, A.J.Paton & J.Parn. – Thailand
* Platostoma calcaratum (Hemsl.) A.J.Paton — southern China, northern Indochina
* Platostoma cambodgense Suddee & A.J.Paton — Vietnam, Thailand, Cambodia, Laos
* Platostoma clausum (Merr.) A.J.Paton — Culion Island in Philippines
* Platostoma cochinchinense (Lour.) A.J.Paton — southern China, Indochina, Java, Sumatra
* Platostoma coeruleum (R.E.Fr.) A.J.Paton — Angola, Zambia
* Platostoma coloratum (D.Don) A.J.Paton — Yunnan, eastern Himalayas, northern Indochina
* Platostoma denticulatum Robyns — central Africa from Cameroon east to Tanzania and south to Angola
* Platostoma dilungense (Lisowski & Mielcarek) A.J.Paton — Zaïre, Tanzania, Zambia, Malawi
* Platostoma elongatum (Benth.) A.J.Paton — Sri Lanka, southern India
* Platostoma fastigiatum A.J.Paton & Hedge — Madagascar
* Platostoma fimbriatum A.J.Paton — Thailand
* Platostoma gabonense A.J.Paton — Cameroon, Gabon, Tanzania
* Platostoma glomerulatum A.J.Paton & Hedge — Madagascar
* Platostoma grandiflorum Suddee & A.J.Paton — eastern Indochina
* Platostoma helenae (Buscal. & Muschl.) ined.. — Mozambique
* Platostoma hemratianum Suddee, Puudjaa & Kiewbang – Thailand
* Platostoma hildebrandtii (Vatke) A.J.Paton & Hedge — Kenya, Tanzania
* Platostoma hispidum (L.) A.J.Paton — Southeast Asia, southern China, Assam, New Guinea
* Platostoma intermedium A.J.Paton — Thailand
* Platostoma kerrii Suddee & A.J.Paton — Thailand, Cambodia
* Platostoma lanceolatum (Chermsir. ex Murata) A.J.Paton — Thailand
* Platostoma laxiflorum A.J.Paton & Hedge — Madagascar
* Platostoma leptochilon Robyns — Zaïre
* Platostoma longicorne (F.Muell.) A.J.Paton — Queensland, New Guinea
* Platostoma madagascariense (Benth.) A.J.Paton & Hedge — Madagascar
* Platostoma mekongense Suddee — Thailand
* Platostoma menthoides (L.) A.J.Paton — Sri Lanka, southern India
* Platostoma montanum (Robyns) A.J.Paton — Zaïre, Tanzania, Rwanda, Burundi
* Platostoma ocimoides (G.Taylor) A.J.Paton — Thailand, Cambodia
* Platostoma ovatum Suddee, A.J.Paton & J.Parn. – Thailand
* Platostoma palniense (Mukerjee) A.J.Paton — southern India
* Platostoma palustre (Blume) A.J.Paton — Southeast Asia, southern China, Assam, Bangladesh, New Guinea
* Platostoma parnellianum Suddee, A.J.Paton & Kiewbang – Thailand
* Platostoma rotundifolium (Briq.) A.J.Paton — tropical and southern Africa
* Platostoma rubrum Suddee & A.J.Paton — Thailand, Laos
* Platostoma siamense (Murata) A.J.Paton — Thailand
* Platostoma stoloniferum (G.Taylor) A.J.Paton — Thailand, Laos
* Platostoma strictum (Hiern) A.J.Paton — Zaïre, Angola, Zambia, Malawi
* Platostoma taiwanense S.S.Ying – Taiwan
* Platostoma taylorii Suddee & A.J.Paton — Thailand, Cambodia
* Platostoma tectum A.J.Paton — Thailand, Cambodia, Laos
* Platostoma tenellum (Benth.) A.J.Paton & Hedge — Madagascar
* Platostoma thymifolium (Benth.) A.J.Paton & Hedge — Madagascar
* Platostoma tridechii Suddee — Thailand
* Platostoma verbenifolium (Watt ex Mukerjee) A.J.Paton — Assam, Bangladesh, Arunachal Pradesh, Myanmar