''Browallia'' is a small

genus Genus (; : genera ) is a taxonomic rank above species and below family (taxonomy), family as used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In bino ...

of seven species of flowering plants (mostly annuals though occasionally

shrub A shrub or bush is a small to medium-sized perennial woody plant. Unlike herbaceous plants, shrubs have persistent woody stems above the ground. Shrubs can be either deciduous or evergreen. They are distinguished from trees by their multiple ...

s or ephemerophytes) belonging to the nightshade

family Family (from ) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). It forms the basis for social order. Ideally, families offer predictabili ...

Solanaceae Solanaceae (), commonly known as the nightshades, is a family of flowering plants in the order Solanales. It contains approximately 2,700 species, several of which are used as agricultural crops, medicinal plants, and ornamental plants. Many me ...

.Armando T. Hunziker: The Genera of Solanaceae. A.R.G. Gantner Verlag K.G., Ruggell, Liechtenstein 2001. , pps. 87-89 inclusive. It is named after Johannes Browallius (1707–1755), also known as Johan Browall, a Swedish botanist, physician and bishop.Genaust, Helmut (1976). ''Etymologisches Wörterbuch der botanischen Pflanzennamen'' The genus is closely related to the

monotypic In biology, a monotypic taxon is a taxonomic group (taxon) that contains only one immediately subordinate taxon. A monotypic species is one that does not include subspecies or smaller, infraspecific taxa. In the case of genera, the term "unisp ...

genus '' Streptosolen'', the single species of which was published initially under the name ''Browallia jamesonii''. ''Browallia'' species are found from southern

Arizona Arizona is a U.S. state, state in the Southwestern United States, Southwestern region of the United States, sharing the Four Corners region of the western United States with Colorado, New Mexico, and Utah. It also borders Nevada to the nort ...

in the north, southward through

Mexico Mexico, officially the United Mexican States, is a country in North America. It is the northernmost country in Latin America, and borders the United States to the north, and Guatemala and Belize to the southeast; while having maritime boundar ...

Central America Central America is a subregion of North America. Its political boundaries are defined as bordering Mexico to the north, Colombia to the southeast, the Caribbean to the east, and the Pacific Ocean to the southwest. Central America is usually ...

and the

Antilles The Antilles is an archipelago bordered by the Caribbean Sea to the south and west, the Gulf of Mexico to the northwest, and the Atlantic Ocean to the north and east. The Antillean islands are divided into two smaller groupings: the Greater An ...

to andine

South America South America is a continent entirely in the Western Hemisphere and mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a considerably smaller portion in the Northern Hemisphere. It can also be described as the southern Subregion#Americas, subregion o ...

, reaching as far south as

Bolivia Bolivia, officially the Plurinational State of Bolivia, is a landlocked country located in central South America. The country features diverse geography, including vast Amazonian plains, tropical lowlands, mountains, the Gran Chaco Province, w ...

Species

'At least 17 binomials, at the specific level, have been proposed for this difficult genus; no doubt that a critical sound treatment is badly needed to clarify its obscure taxonomy' - Armando Hunziker (2001)

* '' Browallia abbreviata'' Benth. * '' Browallia acutiloba'' A.S. Alva & O.D. Carranza * '' Browallia americana'' L. - Jamaican forget-me-not * '' Browallia dilloniana'' Limo, K. Lezama & S. Leiva * '' Browallia eludens'' R.K.VanDevender & P.D.Jenkins - Arizona/yellow bush-violet * '' Browallia mirabilis'' S. Leiva * '' Browallia speciosa'' Hook. - Amethyst flower or bush-violet

Use in Colombian folk medicine

The Ingano of Mocoa in the

Colombia Colombia, officially the Republic of Colombia, is a country primarily located in South America with Insular region of Colombia, insular regions in North America. The Colombian mainland is bordered by the Caribbean Sea to the north, Venezuel ...

n department of Putumayo chew the leaves of ''Browallia speciosa'' to a pulp and pack the resultant material around decaying

molars The molars or molar teeth are large, flat tooth, teeth at the back of the mouth. They are more developed in mammal, mammals. They are used primarily to comminution, grind food during mastication, chewing. The name ''molar'' derives from Latin, '' ...

to alleviate the pain of

toothache Toothaches, also known as dental pain or tooth pain,Segen JC. (2002). ''McGraw-Hill Concise Dictionary of Modern Medicine''. The McGraw-Hill Companies. is pain in the teeth or their supporting structures, caused by dental diseases or referred ...

.Schultes, Richard Evans and Raffauf, Robert F. ''The Healing Forest - Medicinal and Toxic Plants of the Northwest Amazonia'', pub. Dioscorides Press, Portland, Oregon (an imprint of Timber Press, Inc.) 1990 pps. 418-19.

Gallery

File:Browallia americana closeup.jpg, Close-up of flowers of ''Browallia americana''. Self-seeded, garden plant. File:Browallia americana, the Amethyst Flower (11413416736).jpg, Flower and foliage of ''Browallia americana'', wild plant,

Costa Rica Costa Rica, officially the Republic of Costa Rica, is a country in Central America. It borders Nicaragua to the north, the Caribbean Sea to the northeast, Panama to the southeast, and the Pacific Ocean to the southwest, as well as Maritime bo ...

. File:Browallia americana 2017-09-26 4687.jpg, Flower and buds of ''Browallia americana'', in profile,showing pubescent corolla tube and sticky

trichomes Trichomes (; ) are fine outgrowths or appendages on plants, algae, lichens, and certain protists. They are of diverse structure and function. Examples are hairs, glandular hairs, scales, and papillae. A covering of any kind of hair on a plant ...

of calyces. File:Browallia americana 2017-09-26 4685.jpg, Fruiting calyces of ''Browallia americana''. File:Browallia speciosa Marine Bells 1zz.jpg, ''Browallia speciosa'' cultivar "Marine Bells". Cultivated plant. File:Streptosolen jamesonii ( Solanaceae, subfamily Cestroideae ).jpg, '' Streptosolen'' : a monotypic genus closely related to the genus Browallia. ''S. jamesonii'' was formerly classified as a Browallia and is still sometimes known colloquially as "Orange Browallia".

Species

Use in Colombian folk medicine

Gallery

References

Further reading