spiderwort

spiderwort, (genus Tradescantia), genus of about 75 species of erect to trailing weak-stemmed herbs native to the Americas. Spiderworts are extremely easy to propagate, taking root readily from cuttings, and thus are very popular indoor plants. Some are grown as ground cover in warm climates.

Physical description

Spiderwort plants are perennial herbs with thin or tuberous roots. The leaves generally lack petioles (leaf stalks) and are often arranged spirally around the stems. The bisexual flowers are radially symmetric and are borne in small clusters. They are typically white, pink, or various shades of purple or blue. The seeds are borne in three-valved capsule fruits.

Major species

Several species are grown as indoor plants in baskets, especially small-leaf spiderwort (Tradescantia fluminensis) and inch plant (T. zebrina). The latter has an array of colorful-leaved varieties including ‘Purpusii,’ with dark red or bronzy leaves, and ‘Quadricolor,’ with metallic-green leaves striped with green, red, and white. T.×andersoniana comprises a complex series of garden hybrids.

Britannica Quiz

Plants: From Cute to Carnivorous

Also grown in the garden is the common spiderwort, or widow’s tears (T. virginiana), an upright juicy-stemmed plant with white to pink or purple flowers.White velvet, or white-gossamer (T. sillamontana), has leaves and stems covered with a whitish fuzz. Flowering inch plant (T. cerinthoides), with leaves green and smooth above and purplish and fuzzy beneath, has purplish hairy blossoms.