COMMELINACEAE – SPIDERWORT FAMILY Plant: herbs Stem: leafy, sometimes with swollen nodes Root: Leaves: simple, alternate, base forming closed tubular sheath around stem, parallel veined, somewhat fleshy Flowers: mostly perfect; in terminal clusters or solitary; 3 sepals, green; 3 petals – usually blue (or white or pink), sometimes clawed, often rounded, or tube-forming, may differ in color; 6 (3) stamens; ovary superior, 3 carpels, 1 style, 1 stigma Fruit: capsule – 3 chambered, rarely fleshy Other: mostly tropical to subtropical; Monocotyledons Group Genera: ~50+ genera; locally Commelina (day flower), Murdannia (marsh dewflower), Tradescantia (spiderwort), WARNING – family descriptions are only a layman’s guide and should not be used as definitive Flower Morphology in the Commelinaceae (Spiderwort Family) Genus Tradescantia Genus Commelina Zigzag Spiderwort Virginia Day-Flower Claw – the narrowed base Common [Asiatic] Day-Flower portion of some petals Spathe – folded bracts Virginia Spiderwort COMMELINACEAE – SPIDERWORT FAMILY Common [Asiatic] Day-Flower; Commelina communis L. (Introduced) Whitemouth Dayflower; Commelina erecta L. Virginia Day-Flower; Commelina virginica L. Wart-Removing Herb [Marsh or Asian Dayflower or Spiderwort]; Murdannia keisak (Hassk.) Hand.-Maz. (Introduced) Ernest's Spiderwort; Tradescantia ernestiana E.S. Anderson & Woodson Hairystem Spiderwort; Tradescantia hirsuticaulis Small Wild Crocus [Dwarf Spiderwort]; Tradescantia longipes E.S. Anderson & Woodson Glaucous [Ohio] Spiderwort [Bluejacket]; Tradescantia ohiensis Raf. Ozark Spiderwort; Tradescantia ozarkana E.S. Anderson & Woodson Zigzag [Wide-Leaved] Spiderwort Tradescantia subaspera Ker-Gawl. var. subaspera Tharp's [Dwarf] Spiderwort; Tradescantia tharpii E.S. Anderson & Woodson Virginia Spiderwort; Tradescantia virginiana L. Inchplant [Wandering Jew]; Tradescantia zebrina hort. ex Bosse (Introduced) Common [Asiatic] Day-Flower USDA Commelina communis L. (Introduced) Commelinaceae (Spiderwort Family) Oak Openings Metropark, Lucas County, Ohio Notes: 3-petaled flower (clawed), upper 2 blue, lower smaller and white, spathe only fused at base, staminodes with red-brown spot in center; leaves ovate to lanceolate, long sheathed at base with/without white hairs; stems weak but ascending, branches usually ascending; summer to fall [V Max Brown, 2004] Whitemouth Dayflower USDA Commelina erecta L. Commelinaceae (Spiderwort Family) Friedrich Wilderness Park, Bexar County, Texas Notes: 3-petaled flower (clawed), upper 2 blue, lower smaller and white, spathe fused except at top, outer surface of spathe sticky hairy; leaves lanceolate, long sheathed at base with some hairs, sheath with rounded auricles; stems weak; late spring to fall [V Max Brown, 2004] Virginia Day-Flower USDA Commelina virginica L. Commelinaceae (Spiderwort Family) Bald Knob National Wildlife Refuge, White County, Arkansas Notes: 3-petaled flower, all petals blue (clawed), lower petal somewhat smaller, basal to middle part of spathe usually fused; leaves lanceolate, stem leaf sheath not curled or folded, reddish hairs present; stem more or less erect, not creeping; late summer to fall [V Max Brown, 2007] Wart-Removing Herb USDA [Marsh or Asian Dayflower or Spiderwort] Murdannia keisak (Hassk.) Hand.-Maz. (Introduced) Commelinaceae (Spiderwort Family) Little Red River, Heber Springs area, Cleburne County, Arkansas Notes: 3-petaled flower, light blue to pinkish, 3 green sepals, flowers mostly solitary on short pedicel from upper sheaths; leaves lanceolate, sheathed at base without hairs; stems very weak, plant mostly prostrate; late summer to fall [V Max Brown, 2010] Ernest's Spiderwort USDA Tradescantia ernestiana E.S. Anderson & Woodson Commelinaceae (Spiderwort Family) Busiek State Forest and Wildlife Area, Christian County, Missouri Notes: 3-petaled flower, mostly blue, less often purple to rose, sepals green, somewhat fleshy, cupped or cup-shaped, long hairy but not glandular; leaves green, glabrous, long and lanceolate or sword-like, sharp pointed, tapering at base so that leaf width is greater than length of stem sheath; late spring to fall [V Max Brown, 2012] Hairystem Spiderwort USDA Tradescantia hirsuticaulis Small Commelinaceae (Spiderwort Family) Rich Mountain Recreational Area, Polk County, Arkansas Notes: 3-petaled flower, blue to lavender to rose-purple to pink, sepals densely non-glandular long hairy, peduncles very long and densely long hairy with non-glandular hairs; leaves narrow (linear) and taper to a sharp point, width less than width of stem sheath, long hairy (non-glandular); stem densely long hairy with non-glandular hairs; upland forests and glades; spring [V Max Brown, 2012] Wild Crocus [Dwarf USDA Spiderwort] Tradescantia longipes E.S. Anderson & Woodson Commelinaceae (Spiderwort Family) Alley Springs, Ozark National Riverways, Shannon County, Missouri Notes: 3-petaled flower, blue to purple to rose-purple to pink, sepals pinkish-purple tinged, peduncles very long and densely long hairy with both glandular and non-glandular hairs; leaves narrow (linear), usually less or about same width as stem sheath, long hairy or not; stem densely long hairy or not; plant low, often less than 10 cm; spring [V Max Brown, 2010] Glaucous [Ohio] Spiderwort USDA [Bluejacket] Tradescantia ohiensis Raf. Commelinaceae (Spiderwort Family) Oak Openings Metropark, Lucas County, Ohio Notes: 3-petaled flower, blue to white, sepals glabrous to slightly hairy but reddish peduncles not hairy, sepals sometimes red-tinged on edge; leaves very long and lanceolate or sword-like, leaf width usually less than length of stem sheath; late spring to fall [V Max Brown, 2004] Ozark Spiderwort USDA Tradescantia ozarkana E.S. Anderson & Woodson Commelinaceae (Spiderwort Family) Roaring River State Park, Barry County, Missouri Notes: 3-petaled flower, white to slightly pinkish, sepals and very long pedicels hairy (gland tipped); leaves lanceolate to ovate-lanceolate, much wider than leaf sheath on stem; stem straight or slightly zigzag in shape; spring [V Max Brown, 2011] Zigzag [Wide-Leaved] USDA Spiderwort Tradescantia subaspera Ker-Gawl. var. subaspera Commelinaceae (Spiderwort Family) Greer Springs, Oregon County, Missouri Notes: 3-petaled flower, blue, sepals and long pedicels hairy; leaves lanceolate to ovate- lanceolate, wider than leaf sheath on stem; stem usually with a pronounced zigzag shape; late spring to fall [V Max Brown, 2007] Tharp's [Dwarf] Spiderwort USDA Tradescantia tharpii E.S. Anderson & Woodson Commelinaceae (Spiderwort Family) Rocky Barrens Conservation Area, Greene County, Missouri Notes: 3-petaled flower, blue to purple to rose-purple to pink; sepals pinkish-purple tinged, peduncles densely long hairy but no glandular hairs; leaves fairly narrow with dense long hair on both sides, leaf width usually less or about length of stem sheath; prairies and glades; spring [V Max Brown, 2010] Virginia Spiderwort USDA Tradescantia virginiana L. Commelinaceae (Spiderwort Family) Oak Openings Metropark, Lucas County, Ohio Notes: 3-petaled flower, blue to purple to rose- purple; sepals and peduncles densely pubescent but no glandular hairs; leaves very long and lanceolate or sword-like, leaf width usually less or about length of stem sheath; late spring to fall [V Max Brown, 2008] Inchplant [Wandering Jew] USDA Tradescantia zebrina hort. ex Bosse (Introduced) Commelinaceae (Spiderwort Family) Cedar Key, Levy County, Florida Notes: 3-petaled flower, light blue to rose; leaves lanceolate to ovate-lanceolate, wider than leaf sheath on stem, color somewhat variable; late spring to fall (commonly planted because of foliage color) [V Max Brown, 2011].