Commelinaceae
Commelina

Commelina tuberosa L.

First published in Sp. Pl.: 41 (1753)
This species is accepted
The native range of this species is Mexico to Central America, Peru to NW. Argentina. It is a perennial or tuberous geophyte and grows primarily in the subtropical biome. It is has environmental uses, as a medicine and for food.

Distribution

Native to:

Argentina Northwest, Bolivia, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico Central, Mexico Gulf, Mexico Northeast, Mexico Northwest, Mexico Southeast, Mexico Southwest, Peru

Introduced into:

East Himalaya, Germany, India, Kenya, Malawi, Tanzania, West Himalaya

Synonyms

Homotypic Synonyms

Heterotypic Synonyms

Classification

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Publications

POWO follows these authorities in accepting this name:

  • Govaerts, R. (1999). World Checklist of Seed Plants 3(1, 2a & 2b): 1-1532. MIM, Deurne.
  • Hassemer, G. (2019). Further advances to the nomenclatural, taxonomic and geographic knowledge of the New World Commelina (Commelinaceae): toward a continental treatment. Phytotaxa 400: 89-122.
  • Hokche, O., Berry, P.E. & Huber, O. (eds.) (2008). Nuevo Catálogo de la Flora Vascular de Venezuela: 1-859. Fundación Instituto Botánico de Venezuela.
  • Nelson Sutherland, C.H. (2008). Catálogo de las plantes vasculares de Honduras. Espermatofitas: 1-1576. SERNA/Guaymuras, Tegucigalpa, Honduras.

Catálogo de Plantas y Líquenes de Colombia

  • 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

Kew Backbone Distributions

  • Hassemer, G. (2018). Taxonomic and geographic notes on the neotropical Commelina (Commelinaceae). Webbia; Raccolta de Scritti Botanici 73: 23-53.
  • Hassler, M. & Muer, T. (2022). Flora Germanica: alle Farn- und Blütenpflanzen Deutschlands in Text und Bild 1: 1-864. Verlag Regionalkultur, Uberstadt-Weiher.
  • Nelson Sutherland, C.H. (2008). Catálogo de las plantes vasculares de Honduras. Espermatofitas: 1-1576. SERNA/Guaymuras, Tegucigalpa, Honduras.

Useful Plants and Fungi of Colombia

  • Bernal, R., Gradstein, S.R., & Celis, M. (eds.). (2020). Catálogo de Plantas y Líquenes de Colombia. v1.1. Universidad Nacional de Colombia. Dataset/Checklist. https://doi.org/10.15472/7avdhn
  • Diazgranados et al. (2021). Catalogue of plants of Colombia. Useful Plants and Fungi of Colombia project. In prep.
  • Diazgranados, M., Allkin, B., Black N., Cámara-Leret, R., Canteiro C., Carretero J., Eastwood R., Hargreaves S., Hudson A., Milliken W., Nesbitt, M., Ondo, I., Patmore, K., Pironon, S., Turner, R., Ulian, T. (2020). World Checklist of Useful Plant Species. Produced by the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Knowledge Network for Biocomplexity.
  • FPI (2021). Food Plants International. https://fms.cmsvr.com/fmi/webd/Food_Plants_World?homeurl=https://foodplantsinternational.com/plants/
  • GBIF.org (2021). GBIF species matching tool. https://www.gbif.org/tools/species-lookup
  • GRIN (2021). Germplasm Resources Information Network from the United States Department of Agriculture. https://www.ars-grin.gov/
  • Medicinal Plant Names Services (MPNS) v.10 (2021); http://mpns.kew.org/

Other Data

Other Kew resources that provide information on this taxon:

Date Reference Identified As Barcode Type Status Has image?
Jul 26, 2018 Lam; Ricker [s.n.] Mexico K001331951 Yes
Jul 1, 2018 s.coll. [s.n.] K000363263 Type Yes
Jul 2, 2015 Palomino H., G. [4] Mexico K001041609 Yes
Martinez, J.R. [127] Honduras K003932355 Yes
Hawkes, J.G.; Hjerting, J.P.; Rahn, K. [3768] Argentina K003932935 Yes
Hunt, D.R. [9642] Argentina K003932939 Yes
Heyde; Lux [3520] Guatemala K003932358 Yes
Hawkes, J.G.; Hjerting, J.P.; Rahn, K. [3666] Argentina K003932928 Yes
Chimil, M.J. [30093] Mexico K003932361 Yes
Lorentz, P.G.; Hieronymus, G. [991] Argentina K003932931 Yes
Rohweder, O. [863] El Salvador K003932356 Yes
Hawkes, J.G.; Hjerting, J.P.; Rahn, K. [3704] Argentina K003932945 Yes
Mexico K:SPC-28352.000 No
Hawkes, J.G.; Hjerting, J.P.; Rahn, K. [3862] Argentina K003932936 Yes
Chimil, M.J. [30093] Mexico K003932362 No
Burkart, A. [5323] Argentina K003932929 Yes
Hawkes, J.G.; Hjerting, J.P.; Rahn, K. [3622] Argentina K003932940 Yes
Hawkes, J.G.; Hjerting, J.P.; Rahn, K. [3470] Argentina K003932944 Yes
Infantes, J. [2591] Peru K003932722 Yes
s.coll. [s.n.] Argentina K003932930 Yes
Berendsohn; Sipman [1581] El Salvador K003932357 Yes
s.coll. [s.n.] K003933040 Yes
Hawkes, J.G.; Hjerting, J.P.; Rahn, K. [3648] Argentina K003932943 Yes
Hawkes, J.G.; Hjerting, J.P.; Rahn, K. [3685] Argentina K003932942 Yes
Seijo, J.G.; Solis Neffa, V.G.; Schinini, A. [3087] Bolivia K003932721 Yes
Hunt, D.R. [9631] Argentina K003932937 Yes
Hawkes, J.G.; Hjerting, J.P.; Lester, R.N. [1502] Mexico K003932363 Yes
[Port] [58] Mexico K003932360 Yes
s.coll. [s.n.] K003933039 Yes
Hawkes, J.G.; Hjerting, J.P.; Rahn, K. [3923] Argentina K003932934 Yes
s.coll. [s.n.] K003933043 Yes
Hawkes, J.G.; Hjerting, J.P.; Rahn, K. [3882] Argentina K003932932 Yes
Hawkes, J.G.; Hjerting, J.P.; Rahn, K. [3984] Argentina K003932941 Yes
Hawkes, J.G.; Hjerting, J.P.; Rahn, K. [3918] Argentina K003932933 Yes
Hunt [9642] Argentina K003932938 Yes
Mandon, G. [1238] Bolivia Commelina quitensis var. mandonii K000531986 Type Yes
Wood, J.R.I. [17760] Bolivia Commelina quitensis var. mandonii K003932677 Yes
Feb 1, 1984 Palomino H., G. [3] Mexico Commelina coelestis K001041606 Yes
Feb 1, 1984 Palomino H., G. [18A] Mexico Commelina coelestis K001041608 Yes
Gamble, J.S. [1345A] India Commelina coelestis K003070408 Yes
s.coll. [279] India Commelina coelestis K003070413 Yes
Rich, H.H. [320] India Commelina coelestis K003070411 Yes
Gamble, J.S. [1347A] India Commelina coelestis K003070409 Yes
Clarke, C.B. [25912] India Commelina coelestis K003070410 Yes
Contreras, E. [10948] Guatemala Commelina coelestis K003932149 Yes
s.coll. [s.n.] Commelina coelestis K003932963 Yes
Bourne [4367] India Commelina coelestis K003070415 Yes
Hinton, G.B. [1544] Mexico Commelina coelestis K003932151 Yes
Bredemann, G.; Nieser, O. [236] Commelina coelestis K002404567 Yes
s.coll. [s.n.] Commelina coelestis K003932147 Yes
Gamble, J.S. [1346A] India Commelina coelestis K003070412 Yes
Bourne [4637] Commelina coelestis K003070414 Yes
Sinclair [s.n.] Nicaragua Commelina coelestis K001326161 No
s.coll. [s.n.] Commelina coelestis K003932146 Yes
Bates [s.n.] Mexico Commelina coelestis K001326163 Yes
Davies, E.W.; Franquemont, E.; Franquemont, C.; King, S.; Sperling, C. Peru Commelina coelestis K003932603 Yes

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

    • 'The Herbarium Catalogue, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Published on the Internet http://www.kew.org/herbcat [accessed on Day Month Year]'. Please enter the date on which you consulted the system.
    • 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 2025. 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 Names and Taxonomic Backbone

    • The International Plant Names Index and World Checklist of Vascular Plants 2025. 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

  • Kew Science Photographs

    • Copyright applied to individual images

  • Neotropikey

    • Milliken, W., Klitgard, B. and Baracat, A. (2009 onwards), Neotropikey - Interactive key and information resources for flowering plants of the Neotropics.
    • http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0

  • Useful Plants and Fungi of Colombia

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