Details
| Full name | Tradescantia zebrina ‘Burgundy’. |
| Name status | Accepted, the valid name for a unique cultivar. First listed online by Costa Farms (2017). Established with a hardcopy description by Hatch (2022). Also known as:
|
| Origins | Unknown. |
| Classification | The species Tradescantia zebrina is sometimes labelled with its botanical synonyms Tradescantia pendula, Tradescantia argentea, Zebrina pendula and Cyanotis zebrina. |
| Legal protection | None. |
| Availability | Mass produced and widely available around the world, sold with many different trade names. |
Description
Preserved as a herbarium specimen (“Tradescantia zebrina ‘Burgundy'”, 2022).
Described with reference to the RHS Colour Chart (6th Edition: 2019 reprint).
| Species | Tradescantia zebrina. |
| Growth habit | Stems initially grow upright but soon start to sprawl and trail out of any container. |
| Foliage | Stems are 3-5mm wide with internodes 2-7cm long – usually longest at the base and becoming more compact at the ends of growing stems. The colour ranges from dark purplish red (N79A) on upper parts to moderate yellow green (146B) on the undersides of lower stems. All the stems are dotted with lighter green freckles and completely hairless. Leaves are slightly asymmetrical pointed ovals, 5-8cm long and 2-4cm wide, smooth except for a few hairs at the top of the sheath. Each half of the leaf has a stripe running its length, taking up about 30-50% of its total width. On newly-matured leaves the base colour of the upper surface is dark greyish purple (202A) to dark purplish grey (N186A). The stripes are moderate yellow green (138C) or greyish yellow green (191B). In intense light the stripes become streaked with dark purple (79B) near the base, or sometimes all over. On old leaves the base colour fades to moderate olive green (147A), and the purple streaks over the stripes fade away so they become uniform moderate yellow green (138C) or greyish yellow green (191B). Leaf undersides are dark purplish red (N79A). Sheaths range from moderate yellow green (138B) to light purple (N80C). |
| Flowers | Flowers are 10-15mm across. The petals range from light reddish purple (N75A) to strong purple (N81B), with a white centre to the flower. The stamens, filaments, and anthers are all white. |
| Comparisons | Compared to most other Tradescantia zebrina cultivars, it flowers more easily when grown indoors. Compared to Tradescantia zebrina ‘Deep Purple’, the foliage is almost identical, but the flowers of ‘Burgundy’ have white stamen filaments whereas ‘Deep Purple’ flowers have purple filaments. |
References
Costa Farms. (2017). Inch Plant. Internet Archive link.
Hatch, L. (2022). Commelinaceae: A Guide to Modern and Historic Cultivars.
Tradescantia zebrina ‘Burgundy’. (2022). [Herbarium specimen, barcode WSY0168496]. RHS Wisley Herbarium.