The Temperate Database is in the process of being updated, with new records being added and old ones being checked and brought up to date where necessary. This record has not yet been checked and updated.

Common Name: Virginia Day-Flower

General Information

Commelina virginica is a Annual/Perennial up to 1.20 metres tall.
It is harvested from the wild for local use as a food.

Known Hazards

None known

Botanical References

, ,

Range

Southern N. America. Naturalized in Europe in S. Italy[].

Habitat

Wet places, especially swamps, river and stream banks, ditches, and bottomlands in shade or full sun[].

Properties

Edibility Rating
Habit	Annual/Perennial
Height	1.20 m
Cultivation Status	Wild

Cultivation Details

Prefers a light fairly dry well-drained loam with added leafmold[]. Prefers a sunny position with some shelter[].
Plants are not very winter hardy in Britain, the roots are best dug up in autumn and stored like dahlias in a cool frost free place[]. When grown in a light well-drained soil and mulched well, the roots usually survive the winter outdoors.
The roots of this plant do not seem to be tuberous, the plant seems to be more like an annual[].

Edible Uses

Tubers - cooked. Rich in starch, but with a fairly bland flavour.
Edible leaves[].

Medicinal

None known

Other Uses

None known

Propagation

Seed - sow early spring in a greenhouse. The seed usually germinates in 4 - 5 weeks at 20°c[]. When they are large enough to handle, prick the seedlings out into individual pots plant them out in late spring or early summer, after the last expected frosts.
Division in early spring. Make sure that each portion has at least one growing bud[, ].
Cuttings during the growing season. Very easy[].