''Trachystemon'' is a genus of

flowering plant Flowering plants are plants that bear flowers and fruits, and form the clade Angiospermae (), commonly called angiosperms. The term "angiosperm" is derived from the Greek words ('container, vessel') and ('seed'), and refers to those plants th ...

s belonging to the family

Boraginaceae Boraginaceae, the borage or forget-me-not family, includes about 2,000 species of shrubs, trees and herbs in 146, to 156 genera with a worldwide distribution. The APG IV system from 2016 classifies the Boraginaceae as single family of the order ...

. Its native range is Bulgaria to Turkey. It is a monotypic genus, with the only member being ''Trachystemon orientalis''(L.) D.Don.

Trachystemon orientalis

''Trachystemon orientale'', commonly known as Abraham-Isaac-Jacob or early-flowering borage, is a

perennial A perennial plant or simply perennial is a plant that lives more than two years. The term ('' per-'' + '' -ennial'', "through the years") is often used to differentiate a plant from shorter-lived annuals and biennials. The term is also wide ...

herb In general use, herbs are a widely distributed and widespread group of plants, excluding vegetables and other plants consumed for macronutrients, with savory or aromatic properties that are used for flavoring and garnishing food, for medicinal ...

of the family

. Native to eastern

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...

, it is frequently grown as an ornamental for its early blue-violet flowers and large leaves. It quickly spreads to provide a dense

groundcover Groundcover or ground cover is any plant that grows over an area of ground. Groundcover provides protection of the topsoil from erosion and drought. In an ecosystem, the ground cover forms the layer of vegetation below the shrub layer known as t ...

. Trachystemon is derived from the Greek "trachys", meaning rough, and "stemon", a stamen. The specific epithet, "orientalis" means eastern or from the orient, and is a reference to the native distribution of this species. ''Trachystemon orientalis'' is endemic to southeastern Europe and western Asia. The name can also refer to several related plants, such as

species In biology, a species is the basic unit of classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate s ...

of '' Pulmonaria''.

References

External links

* {{Taxonbar, from=Q3536286 Boraginoideae Boraginaceae genera Monotypic asterid genera