Tradescantia zebrina.
Family Commelinaceae.
Also seen as Tradescantia pendula or Zebrina pendula.
It is commonly known as Purple or Striped Wandering Jew.
It is naturalised in Queensland where it is a weed.
A fleshy, trailing plant that branches freely.
Roots grow from the nodes on the stems and it easily grows from cuttings.
The smooth, green stems have reddish-purple areas.
The ovate leaves are up to 7 cm long by 3 cm wide.
Their bases sheath the stem for up to 10 mm.
There are hairs on the sheath.
The blades are pale green or silver on the upper surface.
There are wide purple streaks around the edges and down the centre.
(Sometimes described in reverse as purplish with silvery green stripes).
The underside is purple.
The inflorescences consist of a small cluster of flowers surrounded by 2 leaf-like bracts.
They are found at the ends of the stems.
There are 3 small sepals with the bases fused into a short tube.
The bases of the 3 petals form a pale tube up to 9 mm long.
The 3 round petal lobes are bright pink.
The 3 stamens have purple hairs on the filaments.
The fruit are capsules.
J.F.
