SpiderwortTradescantia sp.
The common name Spiderwort is presumed to come from the way the flowers hang like spiders from a web off the main stem. Also, when the stems of spiderworts are cut, a viscous stem secretion is released which becomes threadlike and silky upon hardening (like a spider's web). The word "wort" is the Saxon name for ‘plant’.
It is a North American native plant named for John Tradescant senior (he died in 1638) a famous English gardener who received the species from Virginia sometime before 1629. He was the headhead gardener to King Charles I of England and was a very serious plant collectors, traveling around the world in search of new plants for the King’s garden.
2 comments:
Beautiful flowers. When can I come for a tour?
I have the purple and white spider warts. They were already planted here when we bought the house. I wasn't loving them, until I cut them. They lasted longer in a vase than some potted plants have.
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