Ruellia

Ruellia
	Ruellia tuberosa
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Plantae
Clade:	Tracheophytes
Clade:	Angiosperms
Clade:	Eudicots
Clade:	Asterids
Order:	Lamiales
Family:	Acanthaceae
Subfamily:	Acanthoideae
Tribe:	Ruellieae
Genus:	Ruellia; L.
Species
	Many, see text
Synonyms
	List Alvarezia Pav. ex Nees; Aphragmia Nees; Aporuellia C.B.Clarke; Arrhostoxylum Mart. ex Nees; Benoicanthus Heine A.Raynal; Blechum P.Browne; Copioglossa Miers; Cryphiacanthus Nees; Cyrtacanthus Mart. ex Nees; Dipteracanthus Nees; Dizygandra Meisn.; Endosiphon T.Anderson ex Benth. Hook.f.; Eurychanes Nees; Eusiphon Benoist; Fabria E.Mey.; Gymnacanthus Nees; Gymnacanthus Oerst.; Holtzendorffia Klotzsch H.Karst. ex Nees; Larysacanthus Oerst.; Lychniothyrsus Lindau; Micraea Miers; Neowedia Schrad.; Nothoruellia Bremek. Nann.-Bremek.; Ophthalmacanthus Nees; Pattersonia J.F.Gmel.; Pentstemonacanthus Nees; Pseudoruellia Benoist; Salpingacanthus S.Moore; Sclerocalyx Nees; Scorodoxylum Nees; Siphonacanthus Nees; Solaenacanthus Oerst.; Spirostigma Nees; Stemonacanthus Nees; Stenoschista Bremek.; Stephanophysum Pohl; Tacoanthus Baill.; Tremacanthus S.Moore; Ulleria Bremek.; ;

Ruellia is a genus of flowering plants commonly known as ruellias or wild petunias.^[3] They are not closely related to petunias (Petunia) although both genera belong to the same euasterid clade. The genus was named in honor of Jean Ruelle (1474–1537), herbalist and physician to Francis I of France and translator of several works of Dioscorides.^[4]

Numerous formerly independent genera are nowadays considered synonymous with Ruellia, including Blechum, Eusiphon, and Ulleria.^[2] Acanthopale and Polylychnis are considered a distinct genera.

Ruellias are popular ornamental plants. Some are used as medicinal plants, but many are known or suspected to be poisonous. Their leaves are food for the caterpillars of several Lepidoptera (butterflies and moths), typically Nymphalinae and in particular members of their tribe Junoniini, such as the larvae of the banded peacock (Anartia fatima). Nymphalinae using Ruellia as host plants include the common buckeye (Junonia coenia), recorded on R. nodiflora, the lemon pansy (Junonia lemonias), recorded on R. tuberosa, and the malachite butterfly (Siproeta stelenes) and Australian lurcher (Yoma sabina), which are recorded on several species.

Selected species

365 species are accepted.^[2] They include:

Ruellia acutangula Nees
Ruellia affinis (Schrad.) T.Anderson
Ruellia angustior (Nees) Lindau
Ruellia asperula (Mart. & Nees) Lindau
Ruellia bahiensis (Nees) Morong
Ruellia blechum L.
Ruellia blumei Steud.
Ruellia bourgaei Hemsl.
Ruellia brevifolia (Pohl) C.Ezcurra – tropical wild petunia, red Christmas pride
Ruellia californica (Vasey & Rose) I.M.Johnst.
Ruellia caroliniensis (J.F.Gmel.) Steud.
Ruellia chartacea (T.Anderson) Wassh.
Ruellia ciliatiflora Hook.
Ruellia currorii T.Anderson
Ruellia densa Hiern
Ruellia devosiana Jacob-Makoy ex E.Morren
Ruellia dielsii Mildbr.
Ruellia dioscoridis Napper
Ruellia dissitifolia (Nees) Hiern
Ruellia drummondiana (Nees) A.Gray
Ruellia elegans Poir.
Ruellia eurycodon Lindau
Ruellia fulgida Andrews
Ruellia geminiflora Kunth – ipecacuanha-da-flor-roxa (Portuguese)
Ruellia hapalotricha Lindau
Ruellia helianthema (Nees) Profice
Ruellia humilis Nutt. – fringeleaf wild petunia, plains petunia, fringeleaf ruellia, hairy ruellia, low ruellia, zigzag ruel
Ruellia hypericoides (Nees) Lindau
Ruellia incomta (Nees) Lindau
Ruellia insignis Balf.f.
Ruellia jaliscana Standl.
Ruellia jussieuoides Schltdl. & Cham.
Ruellia kuriensis Vierh.
Ruellia macrantha (Nees) Gower – Christmas pride
Ruellia macrophylla Vahl
Ruellia makoyana Hort.Makoy ex Closon
Ruellia mcvaughii T.F.Daniel
Ruellia menthoides (Nees) Hiern
Ruellia multifolia (Nees) Lindau
Ruellia nitens (Nees) Wassh.
Ruellia noctiflora (Nees) A.Gray
Ruellia novogaliciana T.F. Daniel
Ruellia nudiflora (Engelm. & A.Gray) Urb.
Ruellia patula Jacq.
Ruellia paulayana Vierh.
Ruellia pedunculata Torr. ex A.Gray
Ruellia prostrata Poir.
Ruellia rasa Hiern
Ruellia rosea (Nees) Hemsl.
Ruellia rufipila Rizzini
Ruellia simplex C.Wright
Ruellia spissa Leonard
Ruellia stemonacanthoides (Oerst.) Hemsl.
Ruellia strepens L.
Ruellia trachyphylla Lindau
Ruellia tuberosa L. – minnie root, fever root, snapdragon root, sheep potato, popping pod, duppy gun, cracker plant (syn. R. picta)
Ruellia verbasciformis (Nees) C.Ezcurra & Zappi
Ruellia villosa (Nees) Lindau

Uncertain status

Ruellia brevicaulis (Nees) Lindau (synonym Dipteracanthus brevicaulis Nees) – Unplaced
Ruellia eriocalyx Glaz.
Ruellia flava Pers. – Unplaced
Ruellia pohlii (synonym Dipteracanthus pohlii Nees) – Unplaced
Ruellia stenandrium

Formerly placed here

Numerous plants, mainly in the family Acanthaceae, are former members of Ruellia. Some examples are:

Asystasia gangetica subsp. micrantha (Nees) Ensermu (as R. intrusa Forssk.)
Asystasia gangetica subsp. gangetica (as R. zeylanica J.Koenig ex Roxb.)
Blepharis ciliaris (L.) B.L.Burtt (as R. ciliaris L. or R. persica Burm.f.)
Dyschoriste oblongifolia (Michx.) Kuntze (as R. oblongifolia Michx.)
Hemigraphis repanda (L.) Hallier f. (as R. repanda L.)
Hygrophila costata Nees et al. (as R. brasiliensis Spreng.)
Hygrophila difformis (L.f.) Blume (as R. difformis L. f.)
Hygrophila lacustris (Schltdl. & Cham.) Nees (as R. lacustris Schltdl. & Cham.)
Hygrophila ringens (L.) R. Br. ex Steud. (as R. ringens L. or R. salicifolia Vahl)
Lepidagathis alopecuroidea (Vahl) R. Br. ex Griseb. (as R. alopecuroidea Vahl)
Lindernia antipoda (L.) Alston (as R. antipoda L.)
Mackaya neesiana (Wall.) Das (as R. neesiana Wall.)
Stenandrium dulce (Cav.) Nees (as R. dulcis Cav.)
Strobilanthes anisophylla (Lodd. et al.) T. Anderson (as R. anisophylla Lodd. et al.)
Strobilanthes hamiltoniana (Steud.) Bosser & Heine (as R. hamiltoniana Steud.)^[5]
Strobilanthes tomentosa (Nees) J.R.I.Wood (as R. tomentosa Wall.)
Teliostachya alopecuroidea Nees (as R. alopecuroidea, R. alopecuroides)

References

^ "Genus: Ruellia L." Germplasm Resources Information Network. United States Department of Agriculture. 2009-01-23. Retrieved 2010-05-26.
^ ^a ^b ^c "Ruellia Plum. ex L." Plants of the World Online. Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Retrieved 9 March 2024.
^ "Ruellia". Integrated Taxonomic Information System. Retrieved 2011-05-20.
^ Burkhardt, Lotte (2018). Verzeichnis eponymischer Pflanzennamen – Erweiterte Edition [Index of Eponymic Plant Names – Extended Edition] (pdf) (in German). Berlin: Botanic Garden and Botanical Museum, Freie Universität Berlin. doi:10.3372/epolist2018. ISBN 978-3-946292-26-5. Retrieved 1 January 2021.
^ "GRIN Species Records of Ruellia". Germplasm Resources Information Network. United States Department of Agriculture. Retrieved 2011-05-20.
^ "21540 Itthipanyanan (1998 QE11)". JPL Small-Body Database. Jet Propulsion Laboratory. Retrieved 6 April 2013.

External links

[GRIN-1] "Genus: Ruellia L." Germplasm Resources Information Network. United States Department of Agriculture. 2009-01-23. Retrieved 2010-05-26.

[powo-2] "Ruellia Plum. ex L." Plants of the World Online. Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Retrieved 9 March 2024.

[ITIS-3] "Ruellia". Integrated Taxonomic Information System. Retrieved 2011-05-20.

[4] Burkhardt, Lotte (2018). Verzeichnis eponymischer Pflanzennamen – Erweiterte Edition [Index of Eponymic Plant Names – Extended Edition] (pdf) (in German). Berlin: Botanic Garden and Botanical Museum, Freie Universität Berlin. doi:10.3372/epolist2018. ISBN 978-3-946292-26-5. Retrieved 1 January 2021.

[GRINSpecies-5] "GRIN Species Records of Ruellia". Germplasm Resources Information Network. United States Department of Agriculture. Retrieved 2011-05-20.

[JPL_Itthi-6] "21540 Itthipanyanan (1998 QE11)". JPL Small-Body Database. Jet Propulsion Laboratory. Retrieved 6 April 2013.

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