Vinca

Greater Periwinkle (Vinca major)

Periwinkle ( Vinca ) is a plant genus of the family of the dogbane family ( Apocynaceae ).

The name is derived from the Latin pervincire for entwine, bind Wreaths: In earlier times, girls have to dance wound wreaths of evergreen.

Features

The vinca species are herbaceous perennial plants to semi- shrubs. Contrary to the generic names are not all vinca evergreen species: the Herbaceous evergreen loses its leaves in the winter and is therefore summer green. You have stolons and a watery, clear sap. The arranged opposite, short-stalked leaves are simple and entire.

The flowers are usually solitary in the leaf axils, or rarely in pairs in zymösen inflorescences. The hermaphroditic, flowers are radial symmetry fünfzählig. The calyx is small. The five blue, purple or white petals are fused Roehrig. The inner surface of the corolla tube is hairy or there are scales available. The Corolla lobe shorter than the corolla tube and overlap. It's just a circle with five stamens present; they are adherent to the corolla tube, but with each other freely. Two carpels are fused into a superior ovaries. The pens are thready. From each fertilized flower, two follicles develop; they are 35 to 40 mm long and contain four to eight seeds. The seeds are shiny.

Dissemination

The genus is distributed from Europe to West Asia. It is one of two Central European species of the widespread, especially in the tropics Hundsgiftgewächse.

Use

Two species are used as ornamental plants in parks and gardens and run wild easily.

It is known especially the Small Periwinkle ( Vinca minor ), which is an old folk medicinal plant, and is still used in homeopathy. Vinca alkaloids from Catharanthus roseus are used as cytostatics.

Types (selection)

There are five to seven ( or twelve ) species in the genus Periwinkle ( Vinca ), including:

  • Medium Periwinkle ( Vinca difformis Pourr. ), With the sub-species: subsp. difformis
  • Subsp. sardoa Stearn
  • Subsp. hirsuta ( Boiss. ) Stearn
  • Subsp. major

Some former is located at Vinca Catharanthus species are now considered, including the medically significant Madagascar periwinkle. Different varieties of Catharanthus be grown as a bedding and balcony plants with different flower colors.

Swell

  • Description in the Flora of China. (English )
  • Description in the Western Australian flora. (English )
  • MA Fischer, W. Adler & K. Oswald: Exkursionsflora for Austria, Liechtenstein and South Tyrol. Linz, 2005. ISBN 3-85474-140-5
  • Ruprecht Duell and Herfried Kutzelnigg: Pocket Dictionary of Plants in Germany. 2005, ISBN 3-494-01397-7
Gentianales Rauvolfioideae Ovary (botany)
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