PlantFiles: Para Cress, Toothache Plant, Eyeball Plant
Acmella oleracea

I have grown this plant as a repeat volunteer in a raised bed for some three years. It has grown well with little to no care on my part. It is a fun worth while curiosity to the herb bed.

I grew the Tooth Ache plant last season in a pot at home and at the Oldham County History Center and Blackacre Nature Preserve, a 1700's homestead. It was grown in the ground at the other two sites.
You don't have to wait for it to reach a particular stage of development before it can be harvested. You can pick leaves at any time, although the flowers are the strongest part of the plant. It is non-toxic. This plant is a perennial in zones 10-11 It is killed by frost, so in other areas, treat as an annual, which you must reseed every year. It gets 1-1.5 feet high.

Very easy to grow.

Scattered about on a heated germination mat will bring 100% germination.

This is such a fun plant for the kids. As if the eyeballs were not entertaining enough, the fact that chewing on the leaves to numb your mouth is even more hilarious.

I have one of these in a pot in my garden, lovely little thing it is. It's a great novelty when people come to visit aswell .. "Here, chew on one of these leaves" .. :) (10 seconds of chewing, "ooh, that tingles" .. "hey, that made my mouth numb!")

My own account of the local anaesthesia is.. 5-10 seconds of chewing, then a tingling in the area of the mouth in contact with the leaves, sort of tastes like lemon, then a numbness follows. The anaesthesia (not complete, though I have never tried more than one small leaf at once) lasts approximately five minutes.

Excellent fun, highly recommended!

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Update: .. Try one of the flowers, about five times as potent as the leaves (at least), awesome :)

Historical medicinal herb with unique acorn-shaped orange-yellow flowers. An unusual container or flowerbed plant. It has striking cone-like flowers with no flower petals, but instead, exhibits golden 'buds' with a rust-red center! Quite an eye-catcher. :)

Had never heard of this plant before seeing it on the plantdatabase. I was amazed, but never really thought much about it. At Opryland Hotel in Nashville, there is a section that is landscaped with "eyeball plant". When I saw it, I thought it rather odd and that it did indeed look like it could be an eyeball, Checked back with the site and sure enough that was it.

Leaves are pretty potent and will cause tingling or numbing of the gums when chewed. It depends from person to person and age of plant. I think leaves are strongest near the time the plant flowers.

It enjoys full sun and hot temps and doesn't seem to have any insect problems. Plants will go limp if the soil completely dries out so if you keep it in a pot, you have to water it in dry summer heat.

It flowers grown from seed in a short time if the plant is happy. Dividing plants will increase blooms and produce more lush full plants. Foliage is glossy and attractive.

Toothache Plant will bloom year-round in northeast Florida (U.S.) if protected from freezes.

It likes a slightly acid soil, organic fertilizer works well.

Can propagate from feathery seeds - cover with 1/8 to 1/4 inch of soil,and keep moist. Sow thinly to make it easier to separate plants. Grows best in a spot that receives morning sun and afternoon shade.

Spilanthes oleracea is very beautiful, and can be grown as an annual in most climates. It has striking cone-like flowers, much smaller than Echinacea. There are no flower petals, but golden buds with a rust-red center (which look like an eyeball.)

This plant is called Toothache Plant because you can chew on the fresh or dried flower, or take the extract to help deaden pain from a tooth until you can visit the dentist. It is not only topically anesthetic for gums and teeth, but it is also bacteriostatic, helping to fight tooth decay.