''Paronychia'' is a genus of plants in the family

Caryophyllaceae Caryophyllaceae, commonly called the pink family or carnation family, is a family of flowering plants. It is included in the dicotyledon order Caryophyllales in the APG III system, alongside 33 other families, including Amaranthaceae, Cactacea ...

with over 110 species worldwide, mostly from warm-temperate North America, Eurasia, South America and Africa. They are herbs that are

annual Annual may refer to: *Annual publication, periodical publications appearing regularly once per year ** Yearbook ** Literary annual *Annual plant *Annual report *Annual giving *Annual, Morocco, a settlement in northeastern Morocco *Annuals (band), ...

biennial Biennial means (an event) lasting for two years or occurring every two years. The related term biennium is used in reference to a period of two years. In particular, it can refer to: * Biennial plant, a plant which blooms in its second year and th ...

perennial A perennial plant or simply perennial is a plant that lives more than two years. The term ('' per-'' + '' -ennial'', "through the years") is often used to differentiate a plant from shorter-lived annuals and biennials. The term is also wid ...

in life span. Some species have a woody base. For the most part they have small, white to yellow-white colored flowers that are often hidden within the paired bracts. The genus ''Siphonychia'' has been incorporated into ''Paronychia'' by botanists. The common names for some of the species include chickweed, nailwort, and Whitlow-wort. The genus gets its name from the disease of the fingernails which it was once thought to cure. Traditional healers in modern-day use species of this genus to treat kidney stones.

Selected species

*'' Paronychia ahartii'' – Ahart's nailwort *'' Paronychia argentea'' – Algerian tea *'' Paronychia argyrocoma'' – Silvery nailwort *'' Paronychia canadensis'' – smooth-forked nailwort *''

Paronychia chartacea ''Paronychia chartacea'' is a rare species of flowering plant in the family Caryophyllaceae known by the common names papery Whitlow-wort and paper nailwort. It is Endemism, endemic to Florida in the United States. There are two subspecies of the ...

'' – paper nailwort *'' Paronychia drummondii'' – Drummond's nailwort *'' Paronychia fastigiata'' – hairy-forked nailwort *'' Paronychia franciscana'' – San Francisco nailwort *'' Paronychia jamesii'' – James' nailwort *'' Paronychia palaestina'' *'' Paronychia rugelii '' – Rugel's nailwort *'' Paronychia sessiliflora'' – creeping nailwort *''

Paronychia virginica Paronychia is an inflammation of the skin around the nail, which can occur suddenly, when it is usually due to the bacterium ''Staphylococcus aureus'', or gradually when it is commonly caused by the fungus ''Candida albicans''. The term is fro ...

'' – Virginia nailwort or Yellow nailwort

References

External links

USDA Plants Profile: North American species
Caryophyllaceae genera Taxa named by Philip Miller {{Caryophyllaceae-stub