Vinca minor

Illustrator: Barbara Alongi

Copyright: Flora of North America Association

Stems trailing. Leaves: petiole 1–2(–10) mm, glabrous, without glandular appendages; blade lan­ceolate to elliptic or some­times ovate, 1.5–4.5 × 0.5–2.5 cm (distals), membranous, base rounded or cuneate, margins not ciliate, apex obtuse to acute, glabrous. Peduncles 1.5–2.5(–3.5) cm, gla­brous. Flowers: calyx lobes narrowly lanceolate, 3–4 mm, glabrous; corolla blue-violet, rarely pale blue, reddish purple, or white, glabrous abaxially, eglandular-pubescent adaxially, tube 3–6 × 2–3 mm, throat 5–7 × 3–4 mm, lobes spreading, obliquely dolabriform, 10–15 × 6–15 mm. Follicles 20–30(–60) × 2–3 mm. Seeds 5–7 × 2–2.3 mm. 2n = 46.

Phenology: Flowering spring; fruiting summer.
Habitat: Roadsides, open woodlands, shaded disturbed areas, old cemeteries, homesites.
Elevation: 0–1300 m.

Distribution

• Generated Map
• Legacy Map

Introduced; B.C., N.B., N.S., Ont., Que., Ala., Ark., Calif., Conn., Del., D.C., Fla., Ga., Idaho, Ill., Ind., Iowa, Kans., Ky., La., Maine, Md., Mass., Mich., Minn., Miss., Mo., Nebr., N.H., N.J., N.Y., N.C., Ohio, Okla., Oreg., Pa., R.I., S.C., Tenn., Tex., Utah, Vt., Va., Wash., W.Va., Wis., Europe, w Asia.

Discussion

Vinca minor has been widely introduced as an orna­mental and commonly spreads from cultivation. It is more frost-hardy than V. major and more common in the midwestern and northeastern United States and eastern Canada, while V. major is abundant across the southern United States. Vinca minor is regarded as invasive in parts of Georgia, Kentucky, South Carolina, and Tennessee.

Selected References

None.

Lower Taxa

None.