Family: Urticaceae

Origin, Description & Uses
Procris repens, commonly known as trailing watermelon begonia, is a low-growing tropical plant native from southern China (Yunnan) through Southeast Asia and other parts of tropical Asia. Despite its common name, it is not a true begonia, but it is admired for its attractive foliage and spreading growth habit. The plant produces small, rounded to oval leaves with silvery or pale green striping that resembles the rind of a watermelon. Its trailing stems and compact form make it well suited for hanging baskets, terrariums, shaded groundcover, and container plantings in humid tropical gardens. It thrives in warm, moist environments with filtered light and is valued primarily as an ornamental foliage plant.

Risks & Threats
Trailing watermelon begonia is considered a low-risk species for Hawaii. It is mainly cultivated in controlled garden settings and has not shown evidence of becoming invasive or aggressively spreading in natural ecosystems. The plant prefers consistently moist, shaded conditions and generally does not tolerate harsh sunlight or drought, which helps limit its ability to spread beyond cultivated areas. As with many ornamental plants, proper garden management and disposal of plant material are recommended, but current information suggests that Procris repens poses little threat to native habitats or agricultural systems in the Hawaiian Islands.

High Risk Traits:

• Shade tolerant
  
• Reproduces vegetatively (rooting stems)
  
• Intentionally dispersed by people (cultivated as ground cover)

Low Risk Traits:

• Not naturalized
  
• No spines, thorns, or burrs
  
• Not allelopathic, parasitic, or toxic
  
• Produces viable seed (but no evidence of prolific seed bank)
  
• No unintentional dispersal, wind dispersal, water dispersal, bird/animal dispersal, or gut passage
  
• Not a weed (garden, ag, forestry, environmental, or congeneric)