Acanthaceae
Thunbergia

Thunbergia grandiflora Roxb.

First published in Bot. Reg. 6: 6 (1820)
This species is accepted
The native range of this species is Central Nepal to S. China and Peninsula Malaysia. It is a liana and grows primarily in the wet tropical biome. It is used as animal food and a medicine, has environmental uses and for food.

Descriptions

Extinction risk predictions for the world's flowering plants to support their conservation (2024). Bachman, S.P., Brown, M.J.M., Leão, T.C.C., Lughadha, E.N., Walker, B.E. https://nph.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/nph.19592

Conservation
Predicted extinction risk: not threatened. Confidence: confident
[AERP]

Bernal, R., G. Galeano, A. Rodríguez, H. Sarmiento y M. Gutiérrez. 2017. Nombres Comunes de las Plantas de Colombia. http://www.biovirtual.unal.edu.co/nombrescomunes/

Vernacular
amor de madre, brasilera, carolia, carolina, emperatriz, quinceañera
[UNAL]

Adhikari, B., Pendry, C.A., Watson, M.F. et al. 2013. Kew Bulletin 68: 651. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12225-013-9481-x

Type
Type: Image, Bot. Reg. 6: 495 (1820), lectotype selected by Kartesz & Gandhi (1991: 89).
Morphology General Habit
Vigorous climbing shrub to more than 10 m
Morphology Stem
Stem angular, sulcate, glabrous to pubescent
Morphology Leaves
Leaves ovate or ovate-triangular, 5 – 19 × 3.5 – 16 cm, base cuneate or cordate, sometimes hastate, apex acute to shortly acuminate, margin sinuate or irregularly remotely dentate with a few large teeth in lower half, palmately 3 – 5-veined, puberulent to densely pubescent, often scabrous, petioles 3 – 7 cm
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers
Flowers solitary (rarely paired) in leaf axils or in the axils of bracts to form terminal usually one-sided racemes 5 – 20 cm long, pedicels 4 – 12 cm; bracts (in racemes) resembling reduced leaves, ovate, mostly 2.5 – 5 × 1 – 3 cm, pubescent; bracteoles green, punctate, oblong to ovate, 2 – 3.8 (− 4.5) × 1 – 1.6 cm, apex mucronate, pubescent, denser at margin
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Calyx
Calyx rim-like, unlobed, c. 2 mm in flower, up to 5 mm high in fruit
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Corolla
Corolla white or bluish-white with yellow throat, glabrous, tube 3 – 5 cm, constricted at base for c. 8 mm then abruptly ventricose and widened to 2 cm at mouth, lobes obovate to rounded, 2.5 – 4 × 2 – 2.5 cm
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Androecium Stamens Filaments
Filaments unequal, shorter 6 – 9 mm, longer 9 – 14 mm, very shortly pubescent, with a tuft of hairs at base, anthers bearded, 7 – 10 mm, spurred, the spur 3 – 4 mm, finely acuminate
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Gynoecium Ovary
Ovary glabrous, style 3 – 4 cm, stigma bilobed, lobes subequal-Capsule glabrous or pubescent, basal part 1 – 1.8 cm wide, beak 2 – 3 cm long; seeds c. 7 – 8 mm
Distribution
Native in the East Himalaya from Central Nepal (Map 3) to Burma (Myanmar), but naturalised and perhaps native elsewhere in SW China and SE Asia. Widely cultivated throughout the world for its showy white flowers.
Ecology
Climber on forest margins and road sides, alt. 200 – 1300 m.
Conservation
Least Concern (LC). This taxon is known from many collections and is commonly found in Tarai region of Nepal. It is also found in Bhutan and NE India.
Phenology
Flowering July to November; fruiting July to December.
Vernacular
Nepali. KagChuchche.
Note
The image in Bot. Reg. 6: 495 (Roxburgh 1820) was first cited as the “type” by Kartesz & Gandhi in 1991 in their nomenclatural notes for the North American Flora and this constituted effective lectotypification at that date (for a discussion of the lack of clarity in lectotypification at that time, see Barrie et al. (1992)) so rendering Wood’s (1994: 176) neotypification of the same image superfluous. Thunbergia grandiflora has both axillary and terminal racemose inflorescences (Fig. 3A, B). As it has large flowers very few herbarium specimens show both types of inflorescence and this has led several taxonomists to describe new varieties or species (Wood 1994) based on one or other of these two inflorescence forms.
[KBu]

Distribution
Biogeografic region: Andean, Caribbean. Elevation range: 5–1700 m a.s.l. Cultivated in Colombia. Colombian departments: Antioquia, Atlántico, Bogotá DC, Bolívar, Chocó, Cundinamarca, Nariño, Valle del Cauca.
Habit
Liana.
Ecology
Habitat according IUCN Habitats Classification: forest and woodland, savanna, shrubland, artificial - terrestrial.
[UPFC]

Bernal, R., Gradstein, S.R. & Celis, M. (eds.). 2015. Catálogo de plantas y líquenes de Colombia. Instituto de Ciencias Naturales, Universidad Nacional de Colombia, Bogotá. http://catalogoplantasdecolombia.unal.edu.co

Distribution
Cultivada en Colombia; Alt. 5 - 1700 m.; Andes, Llanura del Caribe.
Morphology General Habit
Liana
[CPLC]

Extinction risk predictions for the world's flowering plants to support their conservation (2024). Bachman, S.P., Brown, M.J.M., Leão, T.C.C., Lughadha, E.N., Walker, B.E. https://nph.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/nph.19592

Conservation
Predicted extinction risk: threatened. Confidence: confident
[AERP]

Uses

Use Animal Food
Used as animal food.
Use Environmental
Environmental uses.
Use Food
Used for food.
Use Medicines
Medical uses.
[UPFC]

Common Names

English
Blue Trumpet Vine

Sources

  • Angiosperm Extinction Risk Predictions v1

    • Angiosperm Threat Predictions
    • http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0

  • Catálogo de Plantas y Líquenes de Colombia

    • http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0

  • Herbarium Catalogue Specimens

    • Digital Image © Board of Trustees, RBG Kew http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/

  • Kew Backbone Distributions

    • The International Plant Names Index and World Checklist of Vascular Plants 2024. Published on the Internet at http://www.ipni.org and https://powo.science.kew.org/
    • © Copyright 2023 World Checklist of Vascular Plants. http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0

  • Kew Bulletin

    • Kew Bulletin
    • http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0

  • Kew Living Collection Database

    • Common Names from Plants and People Africa http://www.plantsandpeopleafrica.com/

  • Kew Names and Taxonomic Backbone

    • The International Plant Names Index and World Checklist of Vascular Plants 2024. Published on the Internet at http://www.ipni.org and https://powo.science.kew.org/
    • © Copyright 2023 International Plant Names Index and World Checklist of Vascular Plants. http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0

  • Universidad Nacional de Colombia

    • ColPlantA database
    • http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0

  • Useful Plants and Fungi of Colombia

    • http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0