Commelina 953105 200178448 2008-03-22T23:25:51Z Djlayton4 136813 subfamily and tribe {{Taxobox | name = ''Commelina'' | image = Two-blue-petals bgiu 02.jpg | image_width = 240px | image_caption = ''Commelina communis'' flower with typical arrangement of floral parts: 3 staminodes are present above, 3 fertile stamens below with the central one differing in size and form, and a single style emerging between them (curved in this species). | regnum = [[Plant]]ae | divisio = [[Flowering plant|Magnoliophyta]] | classis = [[Liliopsida]] | ordo = [[Commelinales]] | familia = [[Commelinaceae]] | subfamilia = [[Commelinoideae]] | tribus = [[Commelineae]] | genus = '''''Commelina''''' | genus_authority = [[Carolus Linnaeus|L.]] | subdivision_ranks = Selected [[Species]] | subdivision =*''[[Commelina benghalensis]]'' *''[[Commelina caroliniana]]'' *''[[Commelina communis]]'' *''[[Commelina cyanea]]'' *''[[Commelina diffusa]]'' *''[[Commelina erecta]]'' *''[[Commelina sellowiana]]'' *''[[Commelina tuberosa]]'' *''[[Commelina virginica]]'' }} '''''Commelina''''' is a genus of approximately 170 species<ref name=flora>{{Citation| last =Faden| first =Robert | contribution =Commelina| year =2006| title =Flora of North America online| editor-last =Flora of North America Editorial Committee, eds. 1993+| editor-first =| volume =22| pages =| contribution-url =http://www.efloras.org/florataxon.aspx?flora_id=1&taxon_id=107770| place=New York & Oxford| publisher =Oxford University Press| accessdate =[[2007-21-06]]}}</ref> commonly called '''dayflowers''' due to the short lives of their flowers. They are less often known as '''widow's tears'''. It is by far the largest genus of its family, [[Commelinaceae]].<ref>{{citation| last=Acevedo-Rodriguez| first=Pedro; Strong, Mark T.| journal=Contributions of the United States National Herbarium| title=Monocotyledons and Gymnosperms of Puerto Rico and Virgin Islands| volume=52| pages=157-158| year=2005}}</ref> The Swedish taxonomist [[Carl Linnaeus]] of the 18th century named the genus after the two Dutch botanists [[Jan Commelijn]] and his nephew and Kaspar, each representing one of the showy petals of ''[[Commelina communis]]''.<ref name=flora/> A third brother who was not well known for his work is represented by the small white petal.{{Fact|date=November 2007}} The dayflowers are [[herb]]s that may be either perennial or annual. They are characterised by their [[zygomorphic]] flowers and by the involucral [[bract]]s called [[spathe]]s that surround the flower stalks.<ref name=chinaflora>{{Citation| last =Hong| first =Deyuan; DeFillipps, Robert A.| contribution =Commelina diffusa | year =2000| title =Flora of China| editor-last =Wu| editor-first =Z. Y.; Raven, P.H.; Hong, D.Y.| volume =24| pages =35| place=Beijing| publisher =Science Press; St. Louis: Missouri Botanical Garden Press| contribution-url =http://www.efloras.org/florataxon.aspx?flora_id=2&taxon_id=107770| accessdate =[[2007-21-06]]}}</ref> These spathes are often filled with a mucilaginous liquid. Each spathe houses either 1 or 2 scorpioid [[cyme]]s, with the upper cyme being either vestigial or bearing 1 to several male flowers, and the lower cyme bearing several flowers. All members of the genus have alternate leaves.<ref name=flora/> The Asiatic dayflower (''[[Commelina communis]]'') is probably the best known species in the west. It is a common [[weed]] in parts of [[Europe]] and throughout eastern [[North America]]<ref name=flora/>. It grows happily in fairly urban environments, often colonizing neglected gardens. It can be seen growing among garden [[Vinca|periwinkle]] plants, perhaps because the superficial similarity of their [[Plant stem|stems]] and [[Leaf|leaves]] makes it harder to weed out.{{Fact|date=November 2007}} Several species, such as ''Commelina benghalensis'', are eaten as a [[leaf vegetable]] in [[Southeast Asia]] and [[Africa]].<ref name=Pakistan>{{Citation| last =Qaiser| first=M.; Jafri, S.M.H.| contribution =Commelina benghalensis| year =1975| title =Flora of Pakistan| editor-last =Ali| editor-first =S.I.; Qaiser, M.| volume =84| pages =10| contribution-url =http://www.efloras.org/florataxon.aspx?flora_id=5&taxon_id=222000036| place=St. Louis| publisher =University of Karachi & Missouri Botanical Garden}}</ref> ''[[Commelina cyanea]]'', known as Native Wandering Jew or Scurvy Weed, is a native to eastern Australia and easy to grow substitute for the introduced weed Wandering Jew (''[[Tradescantia fluminensis]]''). ==References== {{reflist}} [[Category:Commelinaceae]] [[Category:Leaf vegetables]] [[de:Tagblumen]] [[es:Commelina]] [[he:קומלינה]] [[ja:ツユクサ]] [[pt:Commelina]] [[vi:Chi Thài lài]] [[to:Mohuku vai]]