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=Plant 1: //Tradescantia zebrina// =

__**Plant Identity:**__
 * Group: Angiosperms (flowering plants)
 * Scientific Name and Family: //Tradescantia zebrina// (Commelinaceae) 1
 * Common name(s): Wandering Jew, inch plant, spiderwort

**__Location and Habitat__**

//T. zebrina// is a common houseplant in North America. It is popular due to its beautiful foliage and because it is very easy to grow! This species is not native to the United States; it is indigenous to Central America, Mexico, and parts of South America 1 . In its native habitat, it will grow as a trailing vine in hardwood forests that have high moisture and heavily organic soils. In the United States, it is found in warmer states (Florida, Hawaii) in disturbed upland or hardwood forest sites. It is not hardy in the northern states--and since it won't survive our winters, we do not find it outside in Wisconsin 2 . This particular specimen was found in the University of Wisconsin-Manitowoc greenhouse. It is curated by the Biology faculty and students for teaching and research purposes. In the greenhouse, //T. zebrina// thrives on high light to partial shade conditions, and frequent watering, although it can survive drought conditions for a considerable period of time (up to 2 weeks). In high light conditions, it takes on a brighter magenta red pigmentation, rather than the silvery-green and purple streaking that you see in the picture to the right.



**__Description of Plant__**  __1. Appearance:__ //Tradescantia zebrina// is a vine-like plant which has a watery, succulent style stem and pointed, oval leaves that reach 2-3 inches in length. The leaves are easily characterized by their color patterns. The underside of the leaves are deep purple, and the upper surface are green and silver-striped, with purple pigmentation along the vein ("rib") that runs up the middle of the leaf. Leaves, and sometimes stems, are covered with a fine coating of short, silky hairs. The leaves are attached alternately to the stem. The stems are light green-to-purple and often spotted in appearance.

__2. Flowering and Reproduction__: The specimen we have is not currently flowering; in fact, it is uncommon for these plants to flower in greenhouse and houseplant conditions. In nature, this plant will produce small pink-to-purple petaled flowers, with three petals per flower. The flowers are produced in fall and winter (September - June)3. Flowers are perfect, with both male and female parts, and are pollinated by insects. The capsules of //T. zebrina// consist of three locules; each of which have 2 seeds 3 .

<span style="font-family: Georgia,serif;">In general, //T. zebrina// plants are propagated vegetatively, which means without seed production. Propagation by seeds for gardeners and greenhouse owners is very rare for this plant. This plant is easily propagated by stem cuttings, which means that you simply cut the stem below a node with a sharp razor and plant into a potting mix that is nutrient-rich. The use of rooting hormones (auxins) will aid with propagation. Tradescantias are known for their easy propagation in this manner.

<span style="font-family: Georgia,serif;">**__Interesting Facts__**

<span style="font-family: Georgia,serif;">1. //Tradescantia zebrina// is used in traditional medicines. It is used as an herbal tea in Mexican medicines, and it is used in foods to treat wounds and sprains in some Hmong households. The fact that it is used in Hmong medicine is interesting, because it is not native to Southeast Asia.

<span style="font-family: Georgia,serif;">2. Research at UW-Stout, in collaboration with UW-Manitowoc, shows that extracts taken from //T. zebrina// plants will kill squamous cell carcinoma (a type of skin cancer) cells. These same extracts do not currently appear to have any toxicity to brine shrimp, a common model organism used in toxicity bioassays. More information about this work can be found on the research poster in the hallway outside the biology lab of Founders hall.

<span style="font-family: Georgia,serif;">3. Although this plant is considered non-toxic, the sap can cause skin irritation to some people, and in some cases, dogs who are out in yards with //T. zebrina// groundcover have developed rashes<span style="font-family: Georgia,serif; vertical-align: super;">4 !

<span style="font-family: Georgia,serif;">4. //T. zebrina// is considered a problem plant in Australia. It is not considered an aggressive invader, but it will naturalize in areas with suitable climate (see map below), so care must be taken not to let it escape greenhouses and gardens<span style="font-family: Georgia,serif; vertical-align: super;">5.

<span style="font-family: Georgia,serif;">5. The species name ("zebrina") comes from the "zebra-like" striping, called variegation, on the upper sides of the leaves.

<span style="font-family: Georgia,serif;">__**References**__ <span style="font-family: Georgia,serif; vertical-align: super;">1 Missouri Botanical Garden Kemper Center for Home Gardening. //Tradescantia zebrina//. http://www.mobot.org/gardeninghelp/plantfinder/Plant.asp?code=D681 2 United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Natural Resource Conservation Center. //PLANTS Profile for Tradescantia zebrina//. http://plants.usda.gov/ 3 Flora of North America: North of Mexico. Magnoliophyta : Alismatidae, Arecidae, Commelinidae (in part), and Zingiberidae. (2000). Vol. 22. Oxford University Press, United States. 354 pp. 4 Floridata. //Tradescantia zebrina.// http://www.floridata.com/ref/t/trad_zeb.cfm 5 Biosecurity Queensland Fact Sheet on Invasive Plants and Animals. //Zebrina: Tradescantia zebrina//. http://www.dpi.qld.gov.au/documents/Biosecurity_EnvironmentalPests/IPA-Zebrina-PP102.pdf

= = =**<span style="font-family: Georgia,serif;">Plant 2: Your Second Plant **=