Justicia insularis T.Anderson

Species

Angiosperms > Lamiales > Acanthaceae > Justicia

Characteristics

A herb. It can grow each year from seed or grow for a few years. The stems are angular. They can be swollen at the base and have aerial roots. The leaves are opposite and clasp the stem. The leaves are simple and can have hairs. The leaves are narrowly oval and there can be round teeth along the edge. The flowers are in the axils of leaves or at the ends of the plant. They are in a congested groups with a few flowers and are red or occasionally white. The fruit is an oval capsule. It is yellow to brown. The plant varies a lot.
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Bright pink, red-purple or sometimes yellowish flowers purple markings 3/4 in. long, 1-3 in the axils.
A straggling extremely variable and widespread herb 1-3 ft. high, rooting below
Life form perennial
Growth form herb
Growth support -
Foliage retention evergreen
Sexuality hermaphrodite
Pollination entomogamy
Spread -
Mature width (meter) -
Mature height (meter) 0.9 - 1.21
Root system -
Rooting depth (meter) -
Root diameter (meter) -
Flower color
Blooming months -
Fruit color -
Fruiting months -
Nitrogen fixer -
Photosynthetic pathway -

Environment

Found in a wide variety of habitats, from moist forests to dry savannah regions. It is also found in cultivated land, refuse heaps, grasslands and forest edges.
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A tropical plant. It can be in moist forest or dry savannah. It is best in humus rich soil and slight shade. It can grow in arid places.
Light 4-6
Soil humidity 3-7
Soil texture 3-4
Soil acidity -
Soil nutriment -
Hardiness (USDA) 9-12

Usage

The young leaves are cooked and eaten. They are also eaten in salads.
Uses food material medicinal
Edible leaves shoots
Therapeutic use -
Human toxicity -
Animal toxicity -

Cultivation

Plants can be grown from seed or cuttings. The seeds usually remain dormant in the dry season and grow with the first rains. As seed scatter when the fruit splits open it is difficult to save seeds. It is therefore best to collect almost ripe heads and dry them. Stem cuttings about 15 cm long are used. Root cuttings from near the base of the plant are good.
Mode cuttings seedlings
Germination duration (days) -
Germination temperacture (C°) -
Germination luminosity -
Germination treatment soaking
Minimum temperature (C°) -
Optimum temperature (C°) -
Size -
Vigor -
Productivity -

Images

Justicia insularis unspecified picture

Distribution

Justicia insularis world distribution map, present in Benin, Burkina Faso, Central African Republic, Côte d'Ivoire, Cameroon, Congo, Gabon, Ghana, Guinea, Gambia, Guinea-Bissau, Equatorial Guinea, Liberia, Nigeria, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Chad, Togo, and Zambia

Identifiers

LSID urn:lsid:ipni.org:names:50905-1
WFO ID wfo-0000353617
COL ID 3QWJN
BDTFX ID -
INPN ID -
Wikipedia (EN)
Wikipedia (FR) Link

Synonyms

Justicia insularis Justicia karschiana Ecbolium insulare Tyloglossa diffusa Justicia rostellarioides Adhatoda diffusa Justicia striata subsp. insularis