Mimosa pudica is a perennial herb of the Fabaceae pea family, native to Central and South America. Commonly called the touch-me-not plant, the sensitive plant, or the ‘Tickle Me plant’, it is known for closing its leaves or folding them inwards when touched.
When it comes to playing with plants, there is no greater pleasure than touching the leaves of the “touch-me-not” plant and watching them recoil, shrink and “go to sleep.”
I did this a lot as a child and still do it when the opportunity presents itself. As an adult, I have often wondered what causes such a response from the plant and how it manages to do this.
Although there are many colloquial names for this unique plant, botanists and the rest of the scientific community call it Mimosa pudica. It is a perennial herb of the Fabaceae family, in the genus Mimosa, and it is native to Central and South America.
Mimosa pudica is not the only Mimosa plant to exhibit ‘rapid plant movement’; it is simply the most popular. In 300 BC, the Greek philosopher Theophrastus mentioned a plant that would
‘wither up and collapse’, and then after a time come to life again and flourish. The plant Theophrastus was referring to was most likely part of the genus Mimosa and, according to some research, could have been the species M. asperata.
