''Dichondra'' is a small genus of

flowering plant Flowering plants are plants that bear flowers and fruits, and form the clade Angiospermae (). The term angiosperm is derived from the Ancient Greek, Greek words (; 'container, vessel') and (; 'seed'), meaning that the seeds are enclosed with ...

s in the

morning glory Morning glory (also written as morning-glory) is the common name for over 1,000 species of flowering plants in the family Convolvulaceae, whose taxonomy and systematics remain in flux. These species are distributed across numerous genus, gene ...

family,

Convolvulaceae Convolvulaceae (), commonly called the bindweed, bindweeds or morning glory, morning glories, is a Family (biology), family of about 60 genera and more than 1,650 species. These species are primarily herbaceous vines, but also include trees, sh ...

. They are prostrate,

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 ...

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 ...

plants, with creeping stems which take root readily at the leaf nodes. 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 are white, greenish or yellowish, diameter. Members of the genus are commonly known as ponysfoots and are native to tropical and cool temperate regions around the world.

Taxonomy

Etymology

The genus name is derived from the

Greek Greek may refer to: Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor of all kno ...

words δίς (''dis''), meaning "two", and χόνδρος (''chondros''), meaning "grain". It refers to the fruits.

Species

The number of species is disputed, with some authorities accepting only two species. The following species are recognised in the genus ''Dichondra'' by the International Plant Names Index (IPNI): *'' Dichondra argentea'' Humb. & Bonpl. ex Willd. – silver dichondra — Mexico, Texas. *'' Dichondra brachypoda'' Wooton & Standl. – New Mexico ponysfoot *'' Dichondra brevifolia'' Buchanan *'' Dichondra carolinensis'' Michx. – Carolina ponysfoot *'' Dichondra donelliana'' Tharp & M.C.Johnst. – California ponysfoot *'' Dichondra evolvulacea'' (L.f.) Britton *''

Dichondra macrocalyx ''Dichondra'' is a small genus of flowering plants in the Ipomoea, morning glory family, Convolvulaceae. They are prostrate, perennial plant, perennial, herbaceous plants, with creeping stems which take root readily at the leaf nodes. The flower ...

'' Meisn. *''

Dichondra micrantha ''Dichondra micrantha'', the Asian ponysfoot or lawnleaf, is a species of flowering plant in the family Convolvulaceae. It is native to Texas, Mexico, and the Caribbean, and it has been introduced worldwide. A prostrate perennial reaching , it p ...

'' Urb. – Asian ponysfoot *''

Dichondra microcalyx ''Dichondra microcalyx'', the mouse ear (), is a species of plant in the family Convolvulaceae Convolvulaceae (), commonly called the bindweed, bindweeds or morning glory, morning glories, is a Family (biology), family of about 60 genera and ...

Meisn. Carl Daniel Friedrich Meissner (1 November 1800 – 2 May 1874) was a Swiss botanist. Biography Born in Bern, Switzerland on 1 November 1800, he was christened Meisner but later changed the spelling of his name to Meissner. For most of his 40 ...

– "Oreja de ratón — South America *'' Dichondra nivea'' (Brandegee) Tharp & M.C.Johnst. *'' Dichondra occidentalis'' House – western dichondra — Southern California coast. *'' Dichondra parvifolia'' Meisn. *'' Dichondra recurvata'' Tharp & M.C.Johnst. – oakwoods ponysfoot *''

Dichondra repens ''Dichondra repens'', commonly known as kidney weed, Mercury Bay weed, tom thumb, or yilibili in the Dharawal language, is a species of flowering plant in the family Convolvulaceae and is native to Australia, New Zealand, and the Indian Ocean is ...

'' J.R.Forst. & G.Forst. — kidney weed *''

Dichondra sericea ''Dichondra'' is a small genus of flowering plants in the morning glory family, Convolvulaceae. They are prostrate, perennial, herbaceous plants, with creeping stems which take root readily at the leaf nodes. The flowers are white, greenish or y ...

'' Sw. – silverleaf ponysfoot

Cultivation and uses

Some ''Dichondra'' species are cultivated 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, with

cultivar A cultivar is a kind of Horticulture, cultivated plant that people have selected for desired phenotypic trait, traits and which retains those traits when Plant propagation, propagated. Methods used to propagate cultivars include division, root a ...

selections also available. ''Dichondra micrantha'' is used as a

groundcover Groundcover or ground cover is any plant that grows low over an area of ground, which protects the topsoil from erosion and drought. In a terrestrial ecosystem, the ground cover forms the layer of vegetation below the shrub layer known as the ...

. ''Dichondra argentea'' is a light silver leaved accent plant. The ''Dichondra argentea'' 'Silver Falls' cultivar is often used for trailing over the rims of potted plants, and has lower water needs. Missouri Botanical Garden horticultural treatment: ''Dichondra argentea'' 'Silver Falls'
/ref> ''Dichondra micrantha'' was very popular in

Southern California Southern California (commonly shortened to SoCal) is a geographic and Cultural area, cultural List of regions of California, region that generally comprises the southern portion of the U.S. state of California. Its densely populated coastal reg ...

in the 1950s and 1960s as a

grass Poaceae ( ), also called Gramineae ( ), is a large and nearly ubiquitous family (biology), family of monocotyledonous flowering plants commonly known as grasses. It includes the cereal grasses, bamboos, the grasses of natural grassland and spe ...

substitute for

lawn A lawn () is an area of soil-covered land planted with Poaceae, grasses and other durable plants such as clover lawn, clover which are maintained at a short height with a lawn mower (or sometimes grazing animals) and used for aesthetic an ...

s. Each leaf consists of a stem with a nearly circular or kidney-shaped horizontal leaf top, between in diameter with a

petiole Petiole may refer to: *Petiole (botany), the stalk of a leaf, attaching the blade to the stem *Petiole (insect anatomy) In entomology, petiole is the technical term for the narrow waist of some hymenopteran insects, especially ants, bees, and ...

. In some habitats and landscapes of the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

, some of the non-native ''Dichondra'' species are treated as

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 ...

References

* *

External links

USDA PLANTS Database: ''Dichondra''Jepson Manual treatment for ''DICHONDRA''Flora of China: ''Dichondra''
{{Taxonbar, from=Q140232 Convolvulaceae Convolvulaceae genera Groundcovers