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Photographer: Kitty Kohout
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Family Commelinaceae
Tradescantia occidentalis (Britton) Smyth var. occidentalis
prairie spiderwort, western spiderwort
Tradescantia: after John Tradescant, Sr. (c. 1570 - c. 1637), English gardener to King Charles I
occidentalis: Latin for "western"
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| Status: | Native |
| Plant: | erect, perennial, 8"-24" tall forb with sticky juice; stems slender, straight, smooth with white powdery surface, often branching |
| Flower: | rose to blue, 3-parted, 1" wide, petals alike, stalks and sepals with a few soft hairs; inflorescence terminal cluster (cyme) with 2 long, leaf-like bracts below; blooms June-July |
| Fruit: | papery capsule |
| Leaf: | firm, smooth, linear, less than 1/3" wide, edges rolled inward |
| Habitat: | full sun; dry to moderate moisture; prairies, plains; in sandy, loamy soil |
| (Glossary) |
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 Smyth var. occidentalis&phog=Derek Anderson&spcode=TRAOCCvOCC)
