Chimati Saag / Small Knotweed
Polygonum plebeium
- Habit
- Herb
- Found in India
- Rajasthan, Maharashtra, Bihar & more
- Flowering
- December-June
How to identify Chimati Saag
Identify Chimati Saag by combining habit, leaf characters, flower or fruit details, location, and its family pattern. Do not rely on one feature alone.
- Look for a herb habit.
- Check the distinctive field mark: Small prostrate weedy herb.
- Confirm leaf shape: Linear (long and narrow, parallel sides).
- In season, compare flowering and fruiting time: December-June.
- In India, compare location records such as Rajasthan, Maharashtra, Bihar, Karnataka and nearby regions.
- Confirm it sits within the Polygonaceae family pattern, then compare close relatives before deciding it is Chimati Saag.
Plant Details
- Scientific name
- Polygonum plebeium
- Genus
- Polygonum
- Family
- Polygonaceae
- Habit
- Herb
- Habitat
- Along lakeshores when water level receded
- Habitat type
- Wetland
- Native to
- India, Africa, China, Madagascar, Sri Lanka, Pakistan
- Distribution
- Africa, Tropical Asia, Australia
- Found in India
- Rajasthan, Maharashtra, Bihar, Karnataka, West Bengal, Himachal Pradesh, Assam, Punjab, Jammu & Kashmir, Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, Gujarat, Meghalaya, Haryana, Madhya Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu
- Flowering & fruiting
- December-June
- Conservation status
- Least Concern (LC)
Leaf characters
- Leaf shape
- Linear (long and narrow, parallel sides)recorded
Typical of the family
- Arrangement
- Alternate
Characters marked “recorded” are for Chimati Saag itself; the rest are typical of the Polygonaceae family.
Flower & fruit characters
- Flower symmetry
- Actinomorphic (radially symmetrical)
- Inflorescence
- Spike
- Fruit
- Achene
Typical of the Polygonaceae family — flowering plants only; individual species can differ.
Local Names
- Hindi
- चिमटी साग Chimati Saag, लाल बूटी Lal Buti, मचेची Machechi
- Nepali
- बलुने साग Balune Saag, बेथे Bethe, लट्टे झार Latte Jhaar
- Bengali
- চিমটি শাক Chimati Shaak, খুদি বিষকাঁটালি Khudi Bisakamtali, মেছুয়া শাক Mechuya Shaak
- Kannada
- ಕೆಂಪು ನೆಲ ಅಕ್ಕಿ Kempu Nela Akki, ಸೀರನಿಗೆ ಸೊಪ್ಪು Siranige Soppu
- Malayalam
- പേരാറാത്ത Peraratha
- Marathi
- गुलाबी गोधडी Gulabi Godhadi, गुलाबी गोधडी
About Chimati Saag
Small Knotweed (Polygonum plebeium) belongs to the Polygonaceae family, where it grows as a herb. In India it has been recorded in Rajasthan, Maharashtra, Bihar and 15 other states. It grows in along lakeshores when water level receded. Flowering and fruiting run from December to June.
Polygonaceae
Buckwheat/Knotweed family
Chimati Saag belongs to the Polygonaceae family.
The illustration represents the family — not necessarily this exact species.
Explore the Polygonaceae familySnap it. Know it.
Point your camera at Chimati Saag or any plant and SASYA identifies it instantly — on-device, offline, and private.
Common plant problems
If you are starting from symptoms instead of a diagnosis, use the plant disease symptom checker to narrow the cause before treating.
All plant problem & care guides