keys to the vascular plants of east texas - Botanical Research ...

496 COMMELINACEAE/TRADESCANTIA
13. Stems 2–7 cm tall in flower, to 20(–30) cm in fruit, usually with 1–2 nodes;
sepals somewhat petal-like, usually strikingly purple or rose-colored,
occasionally pale green; pedicels usually 4–6 cm long ____________________ T. tharpii
11. Sepals with glandular pubescence and often eglandular pubescence as well
(use magnification).
14. Leaf sheaths long pilose, at least toward their summits __________________ T. hirsutiflora
14. Leaf sheaths glabrous or short pubescent.
15. Petals ovate, bright blue, occasionally pink; plants 10–30(–45) cm tall; blades
of leaves and bracts 20 cm or less long; bracts not conspicuously saccate
at base ________________________________________________________ T. humilis
15. Petals obovate, magenta-pink to blue; plants 20–75(–100) cm tall; blades
of leaves and bracts 10–40 cm long; bracts conspicuously saccate at base
_____________________________________________________________ T. gigantea
Tradescantia buckleyi (I.M. Johnston) D.R. Hunt, (for Samuel Botsford Buckley, 1809–1884, state
geologist of TX and plant collector), BUCKLEY’S SPIDERWORT. Plant to 50 cm tall; flowers
subsessile; sepals densely pilose at base, sparsely so above; petals pale pink or whitish, clawed,
the claws fused basally, forming a tube; stamens epipetalous; ovary and fruit pubescent. Clay
soils; Gonzales Co. (Carr 2001, 2002d; Turner et al. 2003) at extreme s boundary of East TX; also
Gulf Prairies and Marshes and South TX Plains; in the U.S. known only from TX (also
Tamaulipas in Mexico). Mainly Feb–May. This species has sometimes (e.g., Correll & Johnston
1970) been recognized in the segregate genus Setcreasea as [S. buckleyi I.M. Johnston]. (RARE
2001, 2002b: G3S3) �
Tradescantia edwardsiana Tharp, (of Edwards Plateau), PLATEAU SPIDERWORT. Plant 25–70 cm
tall; stems erect or ascending, puberulent to glabrate; leaf blades elliptic-lanceolate, 7–30 cm
long, 15–65 mm wide, gradually constricted to the sheath, acuminate, minutely puberulent to
essentially glabrate; leaf sheaths 7–20 mm wide, nearly glabrous except for the ciliate margins;
pedicels minutely and densely puberulent, the hairs sometimes glandular when flowers are in
bud stage; sepals glandular-puberulent, sometimes also with eglandular pubescence; petals
white to pale blue or lavender, rarely bright pink, broadly ovate. Rich woods, moist alluvial terraces,
and ravines; Bell, Collin, Dallas, Fannin (BRIT), Hays, Travis (Anderson & Woodson 1935),
Bexar, Comal, and Grayson (Turner et al. 2003) cos.; endemic to TX (Kartesz 1999; Carr 2002b,
2002c)—Edwards Plateau, Cross Timbers and Prairies, and w part of East TX. Feb–May. E
Tradescantia fluminensis Vellozo, (growing in running water), WANDERING WILLY, WHITE WAN-
DERING-JEW. Stems decumbent, rooting at the nodes; leaf blades lanceolate-elliptic to narrowly
ovate, 2.5–6 cm long, 1–2 cm wide, glabrous; pedicels conspicuous, 10–15 mm long; sepals with
midribs bearing eglandular hairs; petals white. Weedy areas; known in TX only from Dallas
(Lehto 25584, BRIT), San Jacinto (E. Keith, SBSC), Nacogdoches (R. George, pers. comm.), Brazos,
and Smith (TAES—sheets reported on Digital Flora of Texas Herbarium Specimen Browser
(2002), but not seen) cos.; AL, CA, FL, LA, and TX. Spring–fall. Native of South America. I m/304
Tradescantia gigantea Rose, (gigantic), GIANT SPIDERWORT. Plant to 100 cm tall; stems erect or ascending,
branching infrequently, glabrous below, minutely pubescent above; leaf blades glabrous
or the upper minutely pubescent; bracts conspicuously saccate at base; sepals usually
with only eglandular pubescence; petals magenta-pink to blue. Limestone soils; e Edwards Plateau
and sw part of East TX, scattered further n and e in Dallas, Hunt (BRIT), Brazos, Upshur,
and Van Zandt (Turner et al. 2003) cos.; probably endemic to TX. Faden (2000b) mapped the
species as occurring in LA but noted that “Plants of Tradescantia gigantea growing around
Ruston, Louisiana, may have originated from cultivated plants.” Mar–May. Reported to hybridize
with T. ohiensis (Anderson & Woodson 1935, who were referring to individuals of T. ohiensis
as T. canaliculata Raf.). E m/304