''Justicia'' is a
genus of
flowering plants in the
family Acanthaceae. It is the largest genus within the family, encompassing around 700
species with hundreds more as yet unresolved.
They are
native
Native may refer to:
People
* Jus soli, citizenship by right of birth
* Indigenous peoples, peoples with a set of specific rights based on their historical ties to a particular territory
** Native Americans (disambiguation)
In arts and entert ...
to
tropical to warm
temperate regions of the Americas, India and Africa. The genus serves as host to many butterfly species, such as ''
Anartia fatima''. Common names include water-willow and shrimp plant, the latter from the
inflorescences, which resemble a
shrimp
Shrimp are crustaceans (a form of shellfish) with elongated bodies and a primarily swimming mode of locomotion – most commonly Caridea and Dendrobranchiata of the decapod order, although some crustaceans outside of this order are refer ...
in some species. The generic name honours Scottish horticulturist
James Justice
Sir James Justice (1698–1763) was a Scottish horticulturalist/gardener. His works on gardening, such as ''The Scots Gardiner'' and ''The British Gardener'', were distributed in much of Britain and Ireland. He reportedly had a passion for botani ...
(1698–1763).
They are closely related to ''
Pachystachys
''Pachystachys'' is a genus of 12 species of flowering plants in the family (biology), family Acanthaceae, native plant, native to rainforest in the Caribbean and Central and South America. They are evergreen perennial plant, perennials and shrub ...
''.
Description
They are
evergreen perennials and
shrubs with leaves which are often strongly veined; but they are primarily cultivated for their showy tubular flowers in shades of white, cream, yellow, orange, violet or pink. Excepting Justicia americana L., they are not
hardy
Hardy may refer to:
People
* Hardy (surname)
* Hardy (given name)
* Hardy (singer), American singer-songwriter Places Antarctica
* Mount Hardy, Enderby Land
* Hardy Cove, Greenwich Island
* Hardy Rocks, Biscoe Islands
Australia
* Hardy, Sout ...
below , so may be grown under glass in frost-prone areas.
Species
Selected species include:
''Justicia brandegeeana'' (formerly ''Beloperone guttata'', commonly called shrimp plant) is native to
Mexico. It is hardy to −4 °C but will often recover in the spring after freezing back in USDA Plant Zone 8a.
''Justicia carnea'' (formerly ''Jacobinia carnea'', common names including Brazilian plume flower, flamingo flower, and jacobinia) is native to
South America in southern
Brazil,
Paraguay and northern
Argentina. It is hardy to −2 °C but will often recover in the spring after freezing back in USDA Plant Zone 8a.
''Justicia procumbens'' is procumbent herb with angular stems, swollen at nodes, small ovate leaves, small purple flowers in terminal spikes, inserted didynamous stamens, and shortly bilobed stigmas.
References
USDA Plants Profile: ''Justicia''
External links
*
{{Taxonbar, from=Q2046390
Acanthaceae genera