Crassocephalum crepidioides (Benth.) S.Moore

Sintrong (Crassocephalum crepidioides) is an annual upright herb 25-100 cm tall of the Asteraceae family, spread from tropical Africa to Asia, first recorded in Indonesia near Medan in 1926 before spreading throughout the archipelago. In West Java, this plant is a favorite raw vegetable rich in antioxidant flavonoid compounds. Sintrong is also traditionally believed to relieve headaches, fever, and tonsillitis.

Grows as a weed generally found wild along roadsides, home gardens, or on abandoned land at elevations of >200 to 2,500 m above sea level.

• Roots soft, short, and not strong.
• Stem soft, watery, shallowly grooved, hairy, many branches, old stem hollow.
• Leaves arranged spread out with stalks that are often eared. Leaf blade oblong elliptical or inverted egg-shaped. Uppermost leaves smaller and often sessile. Base gradually narrowing along the leaf stalk, tip pointed, edges lobed and toothed to coarsely serrated.
• Flowers compound in the form of heads arranged in a terminal flat panicle. Head green, tip orange-brown to brick red, cylindrical.
• Fruit hard (achene), slender and elongated with many white brush-like hairs (pappus).

Propagated generatively (by seed) and vegetatively (tubers, offshoot buds, and secondary branch cuttings).

Saponins, flavonoids, polyphenols, essential oils (mycrene, β-phellandrene, cryptone, α-pinene, α-humulene, β-farnesene, β-guainene, α-bulnesene).

Addresses stomach disorders, treats headaches, fever, boils, wounds, eczema, treats tonsillitis, has anti-inflammatory, antibacterial, antimalarial activity, laxative, emetic (induces vomiting).

• Prepare fresh leaves and sort them. Wash leaves with running water.
• Cut the leaves into 2 parts then dry using an oven at 50 °C for 24 hours until dry.
• Grind the dried leaves using a blender then sift using a 60 mesh sieve to obtain a homogeneous powder.
• Store in an airtight container.

Jombloh, Godong bendhot, Othok owok, Truk bintu (Java), Kejompot, Kepotpot, Kejelengot (Bali).