''Tradescantia'' () is a

genus Genus (; : genera ) is a taxonomic rank above species and below family (taxonomy), family as used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In bino ...

of 85 species of

herbaceous Herbaceous plants are vascular plants that have no persistent woody stems above ground. This broad category of plants includes many perennials, and nearly all annuals and biennials. Definitions of "herb" and "herbaceous" The fourth edition of ...

perennial In horticulture, the term perennial ('' per-'' + '' -ennial'', "through the year") is used to differentiate a plant from shorter-lived annuals and biennials. It has thus been defined as a plant that lives more than 2 years. The term is also ...

wildflowers in the family

Commelinaceae Commelinaceae is a family of flowering plants. In less formal contexts, the group is referred to as the dayflower family or spiderwort family. It is one of five families in the order Commelinales and by far the largest of these with about 731 kn ...

, native to the

Americas The Americas, sometimes collectively called America, are a landmass comprising the totality of North America and South America.''Webster's New World College Dictionary'', 2010 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Cleveland, Ohio. When viewed as a sing ...

from southern

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

to northern

Argentina Argentina, officially the Argentine Republic, is a country in the southern half of South America. It covers an area of , making it the List of South American countries by area, second-largest country in South America after Brazil, the fourt ...

, including the

West Indies The West Indies is an island subregion of the Americas, surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean and the Caribbean Sea, which comprises 13 independent island country, island countries and 19 dependent territory, dependencies in thr ...

. Members of the genus are known by many common names, including inchplant, wandering jew, spiderwort, dayflower and trad. ''Tradescantia'' grow , and are commonly found individually or in clumps in wooded areas and open fields. They were introduced into Europe as

ornamental plant Ornamental plants or ''garden plants'' are plants that are primarily grown for their beauty but also for qualities such as scent or how they shape physical space. Many flowering plants and garden varieties tend to be specially bred cultivars th ...

s in the 17th century and are now grown in many parts of the world. Some species have become naturalized in regions of

Europe Europe is a continent located entirely in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Eastern Hemisphere. It is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, and Asia to the east ...

Asia Asia ( , ) is the largest continent in the world by both land area and population. It covers an area of more than 44 million square kilometres, about 30% of Earth's total land area and 8% of Earth's total surface area. The continent, which ...

Africa Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent after Asia. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 20% of Earth's land area and 6% of its total surfac ...

, and

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

, and on some oceanic islands. The genus's many species are of interest to

cytogenetics Cytogenetics is essentially a branch of genetics, but is also a part of cell biology/cytology (a subdivision of human anatomy), that is concerned with how the chromosomes relate to cell behaviour, particularly to their behaviour during mitosis an ...

because of evolutionary changes in the structure and number of their

chromosome A chromosome is a package of DNA containing part or all of the genetic material of an organism. In most chromosomes, the very long thin DNA fibers are coated with nucleosome-forming packaging proteins; in eukaryotic cells, the most import ...

s. They have also been used as

bioindicator A bioindicator is any species (an indicator species) or group of species whose function, population, or status can reveal the qualitative status of the environment. The most common indicator species are animals. For example, copepods and other sma ...

s for the detection of

environmental Environment most often refers to: __NOTOC__ * Natural environment, referring respectively to all living and non-living things occurring naturally and the physical and biological factors along with their chemical interactions that affect an organism ...

mutagen In genetics, a mutagen is a physical or chemical agent that permanently changes genetic material, usually DNA, in an organism and thus increases the frequency of mutations above the natural background level. As many mutations can cause cancer in ...

s. Some species have become

pests PESTS was an anonymous American activist group formed in 1986 to critique racism, tokenism, and exclusion in the art world. PESTS produced newsletters, posters, and other print material highlighting examples of discrimination in gallery represent ...

cultivated crop A crop is a plant that can be grown and harvested extensively for profit or subsistence. In other words, a crop is a plant or plant product that is grown for a specific purpose such as food, fibre, or fuel. When plants of the same species ar ...

s and considered invasive.

Description

''Tradescantia'' are herbaceous perennials and include both climbing and trailing species, reaching in height. The stems are usually succulent or semi-succulent, and the leaves are sometimes semi-succulent. The

leaves A leaf (: leaves) is a principal appendage of the stem of a vascular plant, usually borne laterally above ground and specialized for photosynthesis. Leaves are collectively called foliage, as in "autumn foliage", while the leaves, stem, ...

are long, thin and blade-like to lanceolate, from . The

flower Flowers, also known as blooms and blossoms, are the reproductive structures of flowering plants ( angiosperms). Typically, they are structured in four circular levels, called whorls, around the end of a stalk. These whorls include: calyx, m ...

s can be white, pink, purple or blue, with three

petal Petals are modified leaves that form an inner whorl surrounding the reproductive parts of flowers. They are often brightly coloured or unusually shaped to attract pollinators. All of the petals of a flower are collectively known as the ''corol ...

s and six yellow

anther The stamen (: stamina or stamens) is a part consisting of the male reproductive organs of a flower. Collectively, the stamens form the androecium., p. 10 Morphology and terminology A stamen typically consists of a stalk called the filament ...

s (or rarely, four

s and eight

s). The sap is

mucilaginous Mucilage is a thick gluey substance produced by nearly all plants and some microorganisms. These microorganisms include protists which use it for their locomotion, with the direction of their movement always opposite to that of the secretion of ...

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

Etymology

The scientific name of the genus chosen by

Carl Linnaeus Carl Linnaeus (23 May 1707 – 10 January 1778), also known after ennoblement in 1761 as Carl von Linné,#Blunt, Blunt (2004), p. 171. was a Swedish biologist and physician who formalised binomial nomenclature, the modern system of naming o ...

honours the English naturalists and explorers

John Tradescant the Elder John Tradescant the Elder (; c. 1570s – 15–16 April 1638), father of John Tradescant the Younger, was an English naturalist, gardener, collector and traveller. Life John Tradescant was probably born in Suffolk. On 18 June 1607 he married El ...

(c. 1570s – 1638) and

John Tradescant the Younger John Tradescant the Younger (; 4 August 1608 – 22 April 1662), son of John Tradescant the Elder, was a botanist and gardener. The standard List of botanists by author abbreviation, author abbreviation Trad. is applied to species he describe ...

(1608–1662), who introduced many new plants to English gardens. Tradescant the Younger visited the new colony of

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States between the East Coast of the United States ...

in 1637 (and possibly twice more in later years). From there, the

type species In International_Code_of_Zoological_Nomenclature, zoological nomenclature, a type species (''species typica'') is the species name with which the name of a genus or subgenus is considered to be permanently taxonomically associated, i.e., the spe ...

, ''

Tradescantia virginiana ''Tradescantia virginiana'', the Virginia spiderwort, is a species of flowering plant in the family Commelinaceae (the spiderwort family). It is the type species of the genus '' Tradescantia'', native to the eastern United States. Common names i ...

'', was brought to England in 1629. Plants of the genus are called by many

common name In biology, a common name of a taxon or organism (also known as a vernacular name, English name, colloquial name, country name, popular name, or farmer's name) is a name that is based on the normal language of everyday life; and is often con ...

s, varying by region and country. The name "inchplant" is thought to describe the plant's fast growth, or the fact that leaves are an

inch The inch (symbol: in or prime (symbol), ) is a Units of measurement, unit of length in the imperial units, British Imperial and the United States customary units, United States customary System of measurement, systems of measurement. It is eq ...

apart on the stem. "Spiderwort" refers to the sap which dries into web-like threads when a stem is cut. The name "dayflower", shared with other members of the

family, refers to the flowers which open and close within a single day. The controversial name "wandering Jew" originates from the

Christian A Christian () is a person who follows or adheres to Christianity, a Monotheism, monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus in Christianity, Jesus Christ. Christians form the largest religious community in the wo ...

myth of the

Wandering Jew The Wandering Jew (occasionally referred to as the Eternal Jew, a calque from German ) is a mythical immortal man whose legend began to spread in Europe in the 13th century. In the original legend, a Jew who taunted Jesus on the way to the Cruc ...

, condemned to wander the earth for taunting

Jesus Jesus (AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ, Jesus of Nazareth, and many Names and titles of Jesus in the New Testament, other names and titles, was a 1st-century Jewish preacher and religious leader. He is the Jesus in Chris ...

on the way to his

crucifixion Crucifixion is a method of capital punishment in which the condemned is tied or nailed to a large wooden cross, beam or stake and left to hang until eventual death. It was used as a punishment by the Achaemenid Empire, Persians, Ancient Carthag ...

.Anderson, George K. ''The Legend of the Wandering Jew.'' Providence: Brown University Press, 1965. xi, 489 p.; In recent years there have been efforts to stop using this and other potentially offensive common names, in favour of alternatives such as "wandering dude" or "wandering willie". In Spanish, ''Tradescantia'' plants are sometimes referred to as ''flor de Santa Lucía'' (

Saint Lucy Lucia of Syracuse ( – 304 AD), also called Saint Lucia () and better known as Saint Lucy, was a Roman people, Roman Christian martyr who died during the Diocletianic Persecution. She is venerated as a saint in Catholic Church, Catholic, Angl ...

'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.

Taxonomy

Subdivisions and species

Starr 080607-7174 Tradescantia spathacea

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. Hunt's 1986 revision united several small genera with ''Tradescantia'' as sections, resulting in a total of twelve sections comprising 68 species, 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. As of December 2023, The Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew recognises 86 species.

Unclassified

* ''

Tradescantia petiolaris ''Tradescantia'' () is a genus of 85 species of herbaceous perennial plant, 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 ...

'' M.E.Jones

Formerly placed here

* ''Tradescantia'' × ''andersoniana'' W.Ludw. & Rohweder The name was published with no description, so is not a valid

botanical name A botanical name is a formal scientific name conforming to the ''International Code of Nomenclature for algae, fungi, and plants'' (ICN) and, if it concerns a plant cultigen, the additional cultivar or cultivar group, Group epithets must conform t ...

; the taxon is now treated as a

cultivar group A Group (previously cultivar-groupInternational Code of Nomenclature for Cultivated Plants, 4th edition (1969), 5th edition (1980) and 6th edition (1995)) is a formal category in the '' International Code of Nomenclature for Cultivated Plants'' (' ...

. *''

Callisia navicularis ''Callisia navicularis'' is a species of flowering plant in the family Commelinaceae Commelinaceae is a family of flowering plants. In less formal contexts, the group is referred to as the dayflower family or spiderwort family. It is one of fi ...

'' (Ortgies) D.R.Hunt (as ''T. navicularis'' Ortgies) *'' Callisia warszewicziana'' (Kunth & C.D.Bouché) D.R.Hunt (as ''T. warszewicziana'' Kunth & C.D.Bouché) *''

Gibasis geniculata ''Gibasis geniculata'' is a trailing plant in the family Commelinaceae, native to Mexico and tropical America. The cultivated plant commonly known as Tahitian bridal veil is often mis-labelled as ''Gibasis geniculata'', however its true species ...

'' (Jacq.) Rohweder (as ''T. geniculata'' Jacq.) *'' Gibasis karwinskyana'' (Schult. & Schult.f.) Rohweder (as ''T. karwinskyana'' Schult. & Schult.f.) *'' Gibasis pellucida'' (M.Martens & Galeotti) D.R.Hunt (as ''T. pellucida'' M.Martens & Galeotti) *''

Siderasis fuscata ''Siderasis'' is a genus of monocotyledonous flowering plants in the dayflower family, first described in 1837. It consists of a single known species, ''Siderasis fuscata'', endemic to the State of Rio de Janeiro in southeastern Brazil, though i ...

'' (Lodd. et al.) H.E.Moore (as ''T. fuscata'' Lodd. et al.) *''

Tinantia anomala ''Tinantia anomala'', common name false dayflower or widow's-tears, is a plant species in the Commelinaceae, related to the Mexican wandering Jew, '' Tinantia pringlei''. It is known only from Texas except for a single specimen from the Mexican s ...

'' (Torr.) C.B.Clarke (as ''T. anomala'' Torr.) *'' Tripogandra diuretica'' (Mart.) Handlos (as ''T. diuretica'' Mart.) * ''

Elasis hirsuta ''Elasis hirsuta'' is a species of monocotyledonous flowering plant in the dayflower family. It is a subshrub endemic to Ecuador Ecuador, officially the Republic of Ecuador, is a country in northwestern South America, bordered by Colombi ...

'' (Kunth) D.R.Hunt (as ''T. hirsuta'')

Distribution and habitat

The first species described, the Virginia spiderwort, ''T. virginiana'', is native to the

eastern United States The Eastern United States, often abbreviated as simply the East, is a macroregion of the United States located to the east of the Mississippi River. It includes 17–26 states and Washington, D.C., the national capital. As of 2011, the Eastern ...

from

Maine Maine ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the United States, and the northeasternmost state in the Contiguous United States. It borders New Hampshire to the west, the Gulf of Maine to the southeast, and the Provinces and ...

Alabama Alabama ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Deep South, Deep Southern regions of the United States. It borders Tennessee to the north, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the east, Florida and the Gu ...

, and Canada in southern

Ontario Ontario is the southernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Located in Central Canada, Ontario is the Population of Canada by province and territory, country's most populous province. As of the 2021 Canadian census, it ...

. Virginia spiderwort was introduced to

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 An endangered species is a species that is very likely to become extinct in the near future, either worldwide or in a particular political jurisdiction. Endangered species may be at risk due to factors such as habitat loss, poaching, inv ...

in Canada, where the northernmost populations of the species are found at a few sites in southern

Saskatchewan Saskatchewan is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province in Western Canada. It is bordered on the west by Alberta, on the north by the Northwest Territories, on the east by Manitoba, to the northeast by Nunavut, and to the south by the ...

Manitoba Manitoba is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada at the Centre of Canada, longitudinal centre of the country. It is Canada's Population of Canada by province and territory, fifth-most populous province, with a population ...

and

Alberta Alberta is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province in Canada. It is a part of Western Canada and is one of the three Canadian Prairies, prairie provinces. Alberta is bordered by British Columbia to its west, Saskatchewan to its east, t ...

; it is more common further south in the United States to

Texas Texas ( , ; or ) is the most populous U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Louisiana to the east, Arkansas to the northeast, Oklahoma to the north, New Mexico to the we ...

and

Arizona Arizona is a U.S. state, state in the Southwestern United States, Southwestern region of the United States, sharing the Four Corners region of the western United States with Colorado, New Mexico, and Utah. It also borders Nevada to the nort ...

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 Below may refer to: *Earth *Ground (disambiguation) *Soil *Floor * Bottom (disambiguation) *Less than *Temperatures below freezing *Hell or underworld People with the surname * Ernst von Below (1863–1955), German World War I general * Fred Belo ...

). 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 ''

'', '' 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''. They are typically grown for their foliage, and many have colourful variegated patterns of silver, purple, green, pink, and gold.

Cultivars

The following cultivars have gained the

Royal Horticultural Society The Royal Horticultural Society (RHS), founded in 1804 as the Horticultural Society of London, is the UK's leading gardening charity. The RHS promotes horticulture through its five gardens at Wisley (Surrey), Hyde Hall (Essex), Harlow Carr ...

Award of Garden Merit The Award of Garden Merit (AGM) is a long-established award for plants by the British Royal Horticultural Society (RHS). It is based on assessment of the plants' performance under UK growing conditions. It includes the full range of cultivated p ...

: * ''T.'' (Andersoniana Group) 'Concord Grape' * ''T. cerinthoides'' 'Nanouk' * ''T. cerinthoides'' 'Variegata' * ''T. fluminensis'' 'Aurea' * ''T. fluminensis'' 'Quicksilver' * ''T. pallida'' 'Purpurea' * ''T. spathacea'' 'Rainbow' * ''T. zebrina'' 'Purpusii' * ''T. zebrina'' 'Quadricolor' The

International Society for Horticultural Science The International Society for Horticultural Science (ISHS) is the world's leading independent organization of horticultural scientists. Its aim is "to promote and encourage research and education in all branches of horticultural science and to fa ...

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.

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 A weed is a plant considered undesirable in a particular situation, growing where it conflicts with human preferences, needs, or goals.Harlan, J. R., & deWet, J. M. (1965). Some thoughts about weeds. ''Economic botany'', ''19''(1), 16-24. Pla ...

in Australia, New Zealand and the southern United States. Other species considered invasive weeds in certain places include ''T. pallida'', ''T. spathacea'', and ''T. zebrina''.

Toxicity

Some members of the genus ''Tradescantia'' may cause allergic reactions in pets (especially cats and dogs) characterised by red, itchy skin. 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 The stamen (: stamina or stamens) is a part consisting of the male reproductive organs of a flower. Collectively, the stamens form the androecium., p. 10 Morphology and terminology A stamen typically consists of a stalk called the filament ...

hairs of some ''Tradescantia'' are colored blue, but when exposed to sources of

ionizing radiation Ionizing (ionising) radiation, including Radioactive decay, nuclear radiation, consists of subatomic particles or electromagnetic waves that have enough energy per individual photon or particle to ionization, ionize atoms or molecules by detaching ...

such as

gamma ray A gamma ray, also known as gamma radiation (symbol ), is a penetrating form of electromagnetic radiation arising from high energy interactions like the radioactive decay of atomic nuclei or astronomical events like solar flares. It consists o ...

s 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 A bioassay is an analytical method to determine the potency or effect of a substance by its effect on animal testing, living animals or plants (''in vivo''), or on living cells or tissues (''in vitro''). A bioassay can be either quantal or quantit ...

for ambient radiation levels.

Gallery

Image:PurpHeart1.jpg, Front view of leaves of ''

Tradescantia pallida ''Tradescantia pallida'' is a species of spiderwort native to the Gulf Coast region of eastern Mexico. It is a perennial herbaceous species with a trailing habit. The cultivar ''T. pallida'' 'Purpurea', commonly called purple heart or purple qu ...

'' 'Purpurea' Image:PurpHeart2.jpg, Back view of leaves of ''

'' 'Purpurea' Image:Zebrina1.jpg, Front view of leaves of ''

Tradescantia zebrina ''Tradescantia zebrina'', formerly known as ''Zebrina pendula'', is a species of creeping plant in the '' Tradescantia'' genus. Common names include silver inch plant and wandering Jew. The latter name is controversial, and some now use the alter ...

'' 'Violet Hill' Image:Zebrina2.jpg, Back view of leaves of ''

'' 'Violet Hill' Image:Smithsoniangardens15.jpg, A budding ''Tradescantia'' flower Image:0 Tradescantia 'Red grape' - Misère - JPG1.jpg, ''Tradescantia'' (Andersoniana Group) 'Red Grape'

References

Bibliography

* * * * *

External links

* *
Flora of North America: ''Tradescantia''
(includes species in USA and Canada only)
PlantSystematics: ''Tradescantia''
{{Authority control Commelinaceae genera