White Mouth Dayflower
Commelina erecta
White Mouth Dayflower
Commelina erecta
Commelina erecta, known locally in some islands as Blousel Blommetjie and more widely as the White Mouth Dayflower, Slender Dayflower, or Widows Tears, is a small perennial herb. It is a familiar wildflower in many warm regions, often appearing in open ground, roadsides, and lightly disturbed areas.
This plant is easily recognised by its delicate, short-lived flowers. Each bloom has two large bright blue petals above a smaller white lower petal, giving it a distinct three-petaled look. True to its name, each flower lasts for just one day, but because buds open one after another, the plant stays in bloom for several days at a time. The flowers also display an interesting feature called enantiostyly, where the style (the central reproductive structure) bends either left or right, creating two mirror-image flower types.
The leaves are narrow, pointed, and arranged along the stem with a slight sheath at the base, sometimes edged in red. Like many monocots, the leaves show parallel veins running from base to tip. The flower sits above a folded, leaf-like bract called a spathe, which forms a protective pocket for developing buds.
Commelina erecta typically grows low and sprawling, with stems that can reach up to a metre long along the ground, though they may stand upright if supported by surrounding vegetation. It produces small fruits with three compartments, each capable of forming a seed.
Across its wide native range, this species has long been used both as a wild edible plant and a traditional medicinal herb. It is known for its antioxidant, antibacterial, antifungal, and anti-inflammatory properties.
Order: Commelinales
Family: Commelinaceae
Genus: Commelina
Species: C. erecta
Binomial name: Commelina erecta
Commelina erecta
Commelina erecta, known locally in some islands as Blousel Blommetjie and more widely as the White Mouth Dayflower, Slender Dayflower, or Widows Tears, is a small perennial herb. It is a familiar wildflower in many warm regions, often appearing in open ground, roadsides, and lightly disturbed areas.
This plant is easily recognised by its delicate, short-lived flowers. Each bloom has two large bright blue petals above a smaller white lower petal, giving it a distinct three-petaled look. True to its name, each flower lasts for just one day, but because buds open one after another, the plant stays in bloom for several days at a time. The flowers also display an interesting feature called enantiostyly, where the style (the central reproductive structure) bends either left or right, creating two mirror-image flower types.
The leaves are narrow, pointed, and arranged along the stem with a slight sheath at the base, sometimes edged in red. Like many monocots, the leaves show parallel veins running from base to tip. The flower sits above a folded, leaf-like bract called a spathe, which forms a protective pocket for developing buds.
Commelina erecta typically grows low and sprawling, with stems that can reach up to a metre long along the ground, though they may stand upright if supported by surrounding vegetation. It produces small fruits with three compartments, each capable of forming a seed.
Across its wide native range, this species has long been used both as a wild edible plant and a traditional medicinal herb. It is known for its antioxidant, antibacterial, antifungal, and anti-inflammatory properties.
Order: Commelinales
Family: Commelinaceae
Genus: Commelina
Species: C. erecta
Binomial name: Commelina erecta
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