Commelina forskaolii Vahl

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Photo: Bart Wursten
By rd from Shashe Wilderness Camp to the National Parks office

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Synonyms:
Common names:	Blue wandering-jew (English)
Frequency:
Status:	Native
Description:	Scrambling annual herb with long trailing stems, rooting at the nodes and short sub-erect branches. Subterranean fleshy stolons often bear reduced, self-fertilising flowers. Leaves alternate, linear-oblong, up to c. 7 cm long, often pale greyish-green, folded along the midrib, hairless or finely velvety; margin wavy. Flowers in 1-2 terminal or leaf-opposed spathes, short-lived, opening in succession. Petals blue; lateral stamens with filaments more or less winged. Note: the subterranean or cleistogamous flowers apparently form a drought-survival development. In times of drought the above-ground parts are poorly developed while the underground stolons will thrive and produce much fertile seed. In good rainy seasons or well watered situations the reverse has been recorded. (Maheshwari & Baldev in Phytomorphology 8, p 284-285, 1958).
Notes:
Derivation of specific name:
Habitat:	In sandy soils in dry scrub and woodland.
Altitude range:	0 - 1650 m
Flowering time:
Worldwide distribution:	Widespread in Africa, Socotra, Madagascar and India.
Mozambique distribution:
Growth form(s):
Endemic status:
Red data list status:
Insects associated with this species:
Spot characters:	Display spot characters for this species
Literature:	Bandeira, S., Bolnick, D. & Barbosa, F. (2007). Wild Flowers of Southern Mozambique Universidade Eduardo Mondlane, Maputo, Mozambique Pages 51 - 52. (Includes a picture). Heath, A. & Heath, R. (2009). Field Guide to the Plants of Northern Botswana including the Okavango Delta Kew Publishing Page 45. (Includes a picture). Mapaura, A. & Timberlake, J. (eds) (2004). A checklist of Zimbabwean vascular plants Southern African Botanical Diversity Network Report No. 33 Sabonet, Pretoria and Harare Page 86. Pickering, H. & Roe, E. (2009). Wild Flowers of the Victoria Falls Area Helen Pickering, London Page 51. (Includes a picture). Setshogo, M.P. (2005). Preliminary checklist of the plants of Botswana. Sabonet Report no. 37. Sabonet, Pretoria and Gaborone Page 117. Timberlake, J.R. & Childes, S.L. (2004). Biodiversity of the Four Corners Area: Technical Reviews Volume Two (Chapter 5-15) Appendix 5-1: Plant Checklist Occasional Publications in Biodiversity 15 Page 181.

Other sources of information about Commelina forskaolii:

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Flora of Botswana: Commelina forskaolii
Flora of Caprivi: Commelina forskaolii
Flora of Malawi: Commelina forskaolii
Flora of Zambia: Commelina forskaolii
Flora of Zimbabwe: Commelina forskaolii

External websites:

African Plants: A Photo Guide (Senckenberg): Commelina forskaolii
African Plant Database: Commelina forskaolii
BHL (Biodiversity Heritage Library): Commelina forskaolii
EOL (Encyclopedia of Life): Commelina forskaolii
GBIF (Global Biodiversity Information Facility): Commelina forskaolii
Google: Web - Images - Scholar
iNaturalist: Commelina forskaolii
IPNI (International Plant Names Index): Commelina forskaolii
JSTOR Plant Science: Commelina forskaolii
Mansfeld World Database of Agricultural and Horticultural Crops: Commelina forskaolii
Plants of the World Online: Commelina forskaolii
Tropicos: Commelina forskaolii
Wikipedia: Commelina forskaolii