Tradescantia Explained

Tradescantia ([1]) is a genus of 85 species[2] of herbaceous perennial wildflowers in the family Commelinaceae, native to the Americas from southern Canada to northern Argentina, including the West Indies. Members of the genus are known by many common names, including inchplant, wandering jew, spiderwort, dayflower and trad.[3] [4]

Tradescantia grow, and are commonly found individually or in clumps in wooded areas and open fields. They were introduced into Europe as ornamental plants in the 17th century and are now grown in many parts of the world. Some species have become naturalized in regions of Europe, Asia, Africa, and Australia, and on some oceanic islands.[5]

The genus's many species are of interest to cytogenetics because of evolutionary changes in the structure and number of their chromosomes.[6] They have also been used as bioindicators for the detection of environmental mutagens.[7] Some species have become pests to cultivated crops and considered invasive.

Description

Tradescantia are herbaceous perennials and include both climbing and trailing species, reaching 30cm–60cmcm (10inches–20inchescm) in height. The stems are usually succulent or semi-succulent, and the leaves are sometimes semi-succulent.[8] The leaves are long, thin and blade-like to lanceolate, from . The flowers can be white, pink, purple or blue, with three petals and six yellow anthers (or rarely, four petals and eight anthers). The sap is mucilaginous and clear.

A number of species have flowers that last for only a day, opening in the morning and closing by the evening.[9]

Etymology

The scientific name of the genus chosen by Carl Linnaeus honours the English naturalists and explorers John Tradescant the Elder (c. 1570s – 1638) and John Tradescant the Younger (1608–1662),[10] who introduced many new plants to English gardens. Tradescant the Younger visited the new colony of Virginia in 1637 (and possibly twice more in later years).[11] [12] From there, the type species, Tradescantia virginiana, was brought to England in 1629.

Plants of the genus are called by many common names, varying by region and country. The name "inchplant" is thought to describe the plant's fast growth,[13] or the fact that leaves are an inch apart on the stem.[14] "Spiderwort" refers to the sap which dries into web-like threads when a stem is cut. [15] The name "dayflower", shared with other members of the Commelinaceae family, refers to the flowers which open and close within a single day.

The controversial name "wandering Jew" originates from the Christian myth of the Wandering Jew, condemned to wander the earth for taunting Jesus on the way to his crucifixion.[16] In recent years there have been efforts to stop using this and other potentially offensive common names,[17] in favour of alternatives such as "wandering dude" or "wandering willie".[18] [19]

In Spanish, Tradescantia plants are sometimes referred to as flor de Santa Lucía (Saint Lucy's flower), in reference to the Saint's reputation as the patron saint of sight, and the use of the juice of the plant as eye drops to relieve congestion.[20]

Taxonomy

Subdivisions and species

The number of species and infrageneric taxa has changed throughout history. The first major classification proposed by Hunt (1980) included 60 species divided into eight sections, with one section divided into a further four series.[21] Hunt's 1986 revision united several small genera with Tradescantia as sections, resulting in a total of twelve sections comprising 68 species,[22] and this infrageneric classification was accepted for several decades.

A recent study by Pellegrini (2017) proposed a new classification based on recent morphological research, dividing the genus into five subgenera.[23] As of December 2023, The Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew recognises 86 species.[2]

Subgenus Austrotradescantia (D.R.Hunt) M.Pell[24]
  • Tradescantia atlantica M.Pell.
  • Tradescantia catharinensis Hassemer & Funez syn. T. crassula var. gaudichaudii[25]
  • Tradescantia cerinthoides Kunth syn. T. blossfeldiana[26]
  • Tradescantia chrysophylla M.Pell. syn. T. serrana[27]
  • Tradescantia crassula Link & Otto syn. T. schwirkowskiana[28]
  • Tradescantia cymbispatha C.B.Clarke
  • Tradescantia decora W.Bull syn. T. multibracteata, T. valida[29]
  • Tradescantia fluminensis Vell.
  • Tradescantia hertweckii M.Pell.
  • Tradescantia mundula Kunth syn. T. insularis[30]
  • Tradescantia seubertiana M.Pell.
  • Tradescantia tenella Kunth
  • Tradescantia tucumanensis M.Pell.
  • Tradescantia umbraculifera Hand.-Mazz.
Subgenus Campelia (Rich.) M.Pell. [31] [32]
  • Sect. Campelia
    • Sect. Corinna D.R.Hunt
    • Tradescantia soconuscana Matuda
    Sect. Cymbispatha (Pichon) D.R.Hunt
    • Tradescantia commelinoides Schult. & Schult.f
    • Tradescantia deficiens Brandegee
    • Tradescantia gracillima Stand.
    • Tradescantia grantii Faden
    • Tradescantia plusiantha Stand.
    • Tradescantia poelliae D.R.Hunt
    • Tradescantia praetermissa M.Pell.
    • Tradescantia standleyi Steyerm.
    Sect. Rhoeo (Hance) D.R.Hunt
    Sect. Zebrina (Schnizl.) D.R.Hunt
    • Tradescantia huehueteca (Standl. & Steyerm) D.R.Hunt
    • Tradescantia schippii D.R.Hunt
    • Tradescantia zebrina Heynh. ex Bosse
    • var. flocculosa (G.Brückn.) D.R.Hunt
    • var. mollipila D.R.Hunt
    • var. zebrina
    Subgenus Mandonia (D.R.Hunt) M.Pell.
    • Tradescantia ambigua Mart. ex Schult. & Schult.f.
    • Tradescantia andrieuxii C.B.Clarke
    • Tradescantia boliviana (Hassk.(J.R.Grant
    • Tradescantia burchii D.R.Hunt
    • Tradescantia crassifolia Cav.
    • var. acaulis (M.Martens & Galeotti) C.B.Clarke
    • var. crassifolia
    • Tradescantia exaltata D.R.Hunt
    • Tradescantia gentryi D.R.Hunt
    • Tradescantia guiengolensis Matuda
    • Tradescantia iridescens Lindl. syn. T. crassifolia var. acaulis
    • Tradescantia llamasii Matuda
    • Tradescantia masonii Matuda
    • Tradescantia mcvaughii D.R.Hunt
    • Tradescantia mixtecana Hern.-Cárdenas, López-Ferr. & Espejo
    • Tradescantia murilloae Zamudio et al.
    • Tradescantia nuevoleonensis Matuda
    • Tradescantia peninsularis Brandegee
    • Tradescantia petricola J.R.Grant
    • Tradescantia tepoxtlana Matuda
    • Tradescantia velutina Kunth & C.D.Bouché
    Subgenus Setcreasea (K.Schum. & Sydow) M.Pell
    • Tradescantia brevifolia (Torr.) Rose
    • Tradescantia buckleyi (I.M.Johnst.) D.R.Hunt
    • Tradescantia hirta D.R.Hunt
    • Tradescantia leiandra Torr.
    • Tradescantia mirandae Matuda
    • Tradescantia orchidophylla Rose & Hemsl.
    • Tradescantia pallida (Rose) D.R.Hunt
    • Tradescantia pygmaea D.R.Hunt
    • Tradescantia rozynskii Matuda
    • Tradescantia sillamontana Matuda
    Subgenus Tradescantia
    • var. melanthera MacRoberts
    • var. scopulorum (Rose) E.S.Anderson & Woodson
    • var. montana (Shuttlew. ex Small & Vail) E.S.Anderson & Woodson

    Unclassified

    Formerly placed here

    Distribution and habitat

    The first species described, the Virginia spiderwort, T. virginiana, is native to the eastern United States from Maine to Alabama, and Canada in southern Ontario. Virginia spiderwort was introduced to Europe in 1629, where it is cultivated as a garden flower.

    The natural range of the genus as a whole spans nearly the entire length and width of mainland North America, from Canada through Mexico and Central America, and thrives in a great diversity of temperate and tropical habitats. It is frequently found in thinly wooded deciduous forests, plains, prairies, and healthy fields, often alongside other native wildflowers.

    Conservation

    The western spiderwort T. occidentalis is listed as an endangered species in Canada, where the northernmost populations of the species are found at a few sites in southern Saskatchewan, Manitoba and Alberta; it is more common further south in the United States to Texas and Arizona.

    Cultivation

    Spiderworts are popular in Europe and North America as ornamental plants. Temperate species are grown as hardy garden perennials, while tropical species such as T. zebrina and T. spathacea are used as house plants. Their popularity and easy spreading nature has led to some species being considered serious weeds in certain places (see below).

    Most cold-hardy garden plants belong to the Andersoniana Group (often referred to with the invalid name Tradescantia × andersoniana). This is a group of interspecific hybrids developed from Tradescantia virginiana, T. ohiensis, and T. subaspera, which have overlapping ranges within continental North America. These plants are clump-forming herbaceous perennials, with individual cultivars mainly differing in flower colour.

    A wide range of tender tropical species are cultivated as houseplants or outdoor annuals in temperate locations, including Tradescantia zebrina, T. fluminensis, T. spathacea, T. sillamontana, and T. pallida.[37] [38] They are typically grown for their foliage, and many have colourful variegated patterns of silver, purple, green, pink, and gold.[38]

    Cultivars

    The following cultivars have gained the Royal Horticultural Society's Award of Garden Merit:[39]

    The International Society for Horticultural Science appointed Tradescantia Hub as an International Cultivar Registration Authority (ICRA) for Tradescantia in 2022. As an ICR authority, the Hub is responsible for recording and maintaining a checklist of the correct names for all cultivars in the genus.[40]

    Weeds

    Due to its ready propagation from stem fragments and its domination of the ground layer in many forest environments, T. fluminensis has become a major environmental weed in Australia,[41] New Zealand and the southern United States.[42] Other species considered invasive weeds in certain places include T. pallida,[43] T. spathacea,[44] and T. zebrina.[45]

    Toxicity

    Some members of the genus Tradescantia may cause allergic reactions in pets (especially cats and dogs) characterised by red, itchy skin.[46] Notable culprits include T. albiflora (scurvy weed), T. spathacea (Moses in the cradle), and T. pallida (purple heart).

    Uses

    Native Americans used T. virginiana to treat a number of conditions, including stomachache. It was also used as a food source. The cells of the stamen hairs of some Tradescantia are colored blue, but when exposed to sources of ionizing radiation such as gamma rays or pollutants like sulphur dioxide from industries, the cells mutate and change color to pink; they are one of the few tissues known to serve as an effective bioassay for ambient radiation levels.

    Bibliography

    External links

    Notes and References

    1. Book: Sunset western garden book . March 1995 . Sunset Publishing Corporation . Sunset Books . 0-376-03851-9 . Brenzel . Kathleen Norris . 6th . Menlo Park, California . 606–607 . en . 32666922.
    2. Web site: Tradescantia Ruppius ex L. . 2022-01-20 . . Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew.
    3. Web site: Tradescantia (Spiderwort) Planting and Growing Guide . 4 February 2022 . Seasonal Gardening.
    4. Web site: Wandering Jew or Trad . 13 June 2023 . Department of Agriculture and Fisheries, Queensland .
    5. Web site: Kew World Checklist of Selected Plant Families . 2020-07-08 . .
    6. Golczyk. H.. 2011. Structural Heterozygosity, Duplication of Telomeric (TTTAGGG)n Clusters and B Chromosome Architecture in Tradescantia virginiana L.. Cytogenetic and Genome Research. en. 134. 3. 234–242. 10.1159/000328915. 1424-8581. 21709415. 39983260.
    7. Sadao . Ichikawa . Somatic Mutation Rate in Tradescantia Stamen Hairs at Low Radiation Levels: Finding of Low Doubling Doses of Mutations . The Japanese Journal of Genetics . 1972 . 47 . 6 . 411–421 . 10.1266/jjg.47.411. free .
    8. Book: Hunt . D. R. . Eggli . Urs . Nyffeler . Reto . Illustrated Handbook of Succulent Plants: Monocotyledons . 2020 . Springer . 978-3-662-56484-4 . 1165–1191 . 2 . Part VIII: The Family Commelinaceae. 10.1007/978-3-662-56486-8 .
    9. Web site: Tilley . Nikki . Growing Spiderworts . 2022-01-28 . Gardening Know How. 13 February 2012 .
    10. Book: Quattrocchi, Umberto . CRC World Dictionary of Plant Names: Common Names, Scientific Names, Eponyms, Synonyms, and Etymology . IV R-Z . 2000 . Taylor & Francis US . 978-0-8493-2678-3 . 2697.
    11. Web site: Lorenzo-Cáceres . José Manuel Sánchez de . 2004 . Las especies del género Tradescantia cultivadas en España . 2022-10-31 . Arboles ornamentales . es.
    12. Book: Strange Blooms: The Curious Lives and Adventures of the John Tradescants . Atlantic Books . Potter, Jennifer . 2006 . London . 9781843543350.
    13. Web site: Inch Plants . Almanac . 4 February 2022.
    14. Web site: Tradescantia zebrina . North Carolina Extension Gardener Plant Toolbox . 4 February 2022.
    15. Web site: Holland . Jonah . 2014-06-06 . Spiderwort: Why's It Called That Anyway? . 4 February 2022 . Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden.
    16. Anderson, George K. The Legend of the Wandering Jew. Providence: Brown University Press, 1965. xi, 489 p.;
    17. Web site: Jackson . MJ . 2020-08-09 . Racism in Taxonomy: What's in a Name? . 2021-04-19 . . en-US.
    18. Web site: 2019-06-26. Why We're No Longer Using the Name Wandering Jew. 2021-08-05. Bloombox Club.
    19. Web site: Goldwyn. Brittany. 2019-07-23. How to Care for a Wandering Tradescantia Zebrina Plant. 2021-08-05. by Brittany Goldwyn. en-US.
    20. Web site: Bugatti Para . Cristina L. de . 2008-05-17 . Esos yuyos con aire lujoso . 2022-10-31 . . es.
    21. Sections and Series in Tradescantia: American Commelinaceae: IX . David R. . Hunt . Kew Bulletin . 35 . 2 . 1980 . 437–442 . 4114596 . 10.2307/4114596. 1980KewBu..35..437H .
    22. Campelia, Rhoeo and Zebrina united with Tradescantia: American Commelinaceae: XIII . David R. . Hunt . Kew Bulletin . 41 . 2 . 1986 . 401–405 . 4102948 . 10.2307/4102948. 1986KewBu..41..401H .
    23. Pellegrini . Marco . Morphological phylogeny of Tradescantia L. (Commelinaceae) sheds light on a new infrageneric classification for the genus and novelties on the systematics of subtribe Tradescantiinae . PhytoKeys . 26 Oct 2017 . 89 . 11–72 . 10.3897/phytokeys.89.20388 . 29118649 . 5672149 . 4 February 2022 . free .
    24. Pellegrini . Marco . Wandering throughout South America: Taxonomic revision of Tradescantia subg. Austrotradescantia (D.R.Hunt) M.Pell. (Commelinaceae) . PhytoKeys . 19 July 2018 . 104 . 1–97 . 10.3897/phytokeys.104.28484 . 51728169 . 4 February 2022. free . 30057479 . 6062585 .
    25. Hassemer . Gustavo . Funez . Luís . Novelties and notes on Tradescantia (Commelinaceae) from Brazil . Phytotaxa . 1 September 2020 . 458 . 2 . 139–158 . 10.11646/phytotaxa.458.2.2 . 6 December 2023.
    26. Web site: Pellegrini . M.O.O. . 2020 . Tradescantia cerinthoides Kunth . 2022-03-01 . Flora do Brasil . Jardim Botânico do Rio de Janeiro.
    27. Web site: Pellegrini . M.O.O. . 2020 . Tradescantia chrysophylla M.Pell. . 2022-03-01 . Flora do Brasil . Jardim Botânico do Rio de Janeiro.
    28. Web site: Pellegrini . M.O.O. . 2020 . Tradescantia crassula Link & Otto . 2022-03-01 . Flora do Brasil . Jardim Botânico do Rio de Janeiro.
    29. Web site: Pellegrini . M.O.O. . 2020 . Tradescantia decora W.Bull . 2022-03-01 . Flora do Brasil . Jardim Botânico do Rio de Janeiro.
    30. Web site: Pellegrini . M.O.O. . 2020 . Tradescantia mundula Kunth . 2022-03-01 . Flora do Brasil . Jardim Botânico do Rio de Janeiro.
    31. Hunt . D. R. . 1986 . Campelia, Rhoeo and Zebrina united with Tradescantia: American Commelinaceae: XIII . Kew Bulletin . 41 . 2 . 401–405 . 10.2307/4102948 . 4102948 . 1986KewBu..41..401H . 0075-5974.
    32. Hunt . D. R. . 1980 . Sections and series in Tradescantia: American Commelinaceae: IX . Kew Bulletin . 35 . 2 . 437–442 . 10.2307/4114596 . 4114596 . 1980KewBu..35..437H . 0075-5974.
    33. Ludwig . Wolfgang . Rohweder . Otto . 1954 . Zur Nomenklatur zweier Commelinaceen . Feddes Repertorium Specierum Novarum Regni Vegetabilis . 56 . 3 . 282 . 10.1002/fedr.19540560304.
    34. Web site: Tradescantia × andersoniana. 2023-12-06 . Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew.
    35. Book: Walters . S.M. . Brady . A. . Brickell . C.D. . Cullen . J. . Green . P.S. . Lewis . J. . Matthews . V.A. . Webb . D.A. . Yeo . P.F. . Alexander . J.C.M. . 1989 . European Garden Flora: Volume II . Cambridge University Press . 31.
    36. Web site: Tradescantia Andersoniana Group . Royal Horticultural Society . 31 Oct 2022.
    37. Web site: Espiritu . Kevin . 23 March 2017 . Wandering Jew Plant: Care, Types, and Growing Tips . 2 November 2021 . Epic Gardening.
    38. Web site: Tradescantia . 2 November 2021 . Better Homes & Gardens.
    39. Web site: AGM Plants April 2023 (C) RHS - Ornamental . Royal Horticultural Society . 12 October 2023.
    40. Web site: ICRA Report Sheet: Tradescantia Hub . International Society for Horticultural Science . 17 October 2023.
    41. Web site: August 2007 . Tradescantia fluminensis . 2022-10-30 . Weeds Australia . . en.
    42. Book: Tradescantia fluminensis (wandering Jew) . 2017 . 10.1079/9781786392145.0000 . Cabi.org . 9781786392145 . 2020-07-08. Witt . A . Luke . Q .
    43. Book: Tradescantia pallida (purple queen) . 2017 . 10.1079/9781786392145.0000 . Cabi.org . 9781786392145 . 2020-07-08 . Witt . A . Luke . Q . 2020-10-21 . https://web.archive.org/web/20201021070228/https://www.cabi.org/isc/datasheet/117574 . dead .
    44. Book: Tradescantia spathacea (boat lily) . 2017 . 10.1079/9781786392145.0000 . Cabi.org . 9781786392145 . 2020-07-08 . Witt . A . Luke . Q . 2022-11-08 . https://web.archive.org/web/20221108091313/https://www.cabi.org/ISC/datasheet/119453 . dead .
    45. Book: Tradescantia zebrina (wandering jew) . 2017 . 10.1079/9781786392145.0000 . Cabi.org . 9781786392145 . 2020-07-08 . Witt . A . Luke . Q . 2020-10-28 . https://web.archive.org/web/20201028105216/https://www.cabi.org/isc/datasheet/110354 . dead .
    46. Web site: Inch Plant . 2022-03-04 . . en.

    This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "Tradescantia".

    Except where otherwise indicated, Everything.Explained.Today is © Copyright 2009-2024, A B Cryer, All Rights Reserved. Cookie policy.