Ruellia metziae

Ruellia metziae, commonly known as Metz's wild-petunia, is a species of flowering plant in the family Acanthaceae. It is native to Texas and northeastern Mexico, where it grows in dry, calcareous habitats.

Description

Ruellia metziae is a perennial herbaceous plant. It grows about 1–2 feet tall, with erect stems, oval-shaped fuzzy green leaves, trumpet-shaped white flowers, and capsular fruit. It flowers from April through July.

R. metziae is distinguished from related taxa by its relatively large corolla, which is 50–65 mm long, white to pale bluish purple, and only slightly curved, and by its calyx, which is 14–20 mm long in flower.

Taxonomy

Ruellia metziae was first described by B. C. Tharp in 1949 in American Midland Naturalist. The type specimen was collected on 7 July 1946 from the Ridgetop School playground in Travis County, Texas, and is deposited at the University of Texas Herbarium (TEX).

The specific epithet honors Sister Mary Clare Metz, a professor of botany at Our Lady of the Lake University in San Antonio, Texas. The name was originally published as "Metzae"; Ruellia metzae is treated as an orthographic variant of Ruellia metziae.

Distribution and habitat

The native range of Ruellia metziae is from Texas to northeastern Mexico. It grows primarily in desert or dry shrubland habitat over calcareous gravels and calcareous woodlands.

Cultivation

Ruellia metziae is cultivated as a native ornamental plant in Texas. The Native Plant Society of Texas describes it as a low-water, sun-loving plant that blooms in summer and can be used in container gardens. It is also suggested as a native replacement for invasive Mexican petunia, Ruellia simplex.

Conservation

NatureServe ranks Ruellia metziae as G3G5, rounded to G4, meaning the species is considered apparently secure globally. The species has no status under the United States Endangered Species Act.

References

metziae Category:Flora of Texas Category:Flora of Northeastern Mexico Category:Plants described in 1949