Portulaca

Portulaca (/ˌpɔːrtjuːˈleɪkə/,[2] purslane) is the type genus of the flowering plant family Portulacaceae, comprising about 40-100 species found in the tropics and warm temperate regions. They are also known as purslanes.

Portulaca 'All Aglow'

Portulaca grandiflora 'Bicolor'

Portulaca
A Large array of Portulaca umbraticola and Portulaca oleracea (middle right)
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Plantae
Clade:	Tracheophytes
Clade:	Angiosperms
Clade:	Eudicots
Order:	Caryophyllales
Family:	Portulacaceae
Genus:	Portulaca L.[1]
Species
about 40-100, see text
Synonyms
Sedopsis (Engl.) Exell & Mendonça[1]

Common purslane (Portulaca oleracea) is widely considered an edible plant, and in some areas it is invasive. Some Portulaca species are used as food plants by the larvae of some Lepidoptera species including the nutmeg moth (Hadula trifolii).

Selected species

Portulaca amilis Speg. – Paraguayan purslane Portulaca andicola Portulaca bicolor – Pigweed Portulaca biloba Urb. – Cuban purslane Portulaca boliviensis Portulaca caulerpoides Britt. & Wilson ex Britt. – Puerto Rican purslane Portulaca cryptopetala Portucala cyclophylla[3] F.Muell Portulaca elatior Portulaca elongata Portulaca eruca Portulaca fluvialis Portulaca fragilis Portulaca gilliesii Portulaca gracilis Portulaca grandiflora Hook. – Moss-rose purslane Portulaca halimoides L. – Silkcotton purslane Portulaca insularis Portulaca intraterranea Portulaca kuriensis A.G.Mill. (Yemen) Portulaca lanuginosa Portulaca longiusculotuberculata

Portulaca lutea Soland. ex G.Forst. – Yellow purslane Portulaca minuta Correll Portulaca molokiniensis Hobdy – ʻIhi Portulaca mucronata Portulaca napiformis Portulaca oleracea L. – Common purslane, pigweed Portulaca papulosa Portulaca pedicellata Portulaca perennis Portulaca pilosa L. – Shaggy purslane Portulaca psammotropha Portulaca quadrifida L. – Chickenweed purslane Portulaca rotundifolia Portulaca rubricaulis – Redstem purslane Portulaca samhaensis A.G.Mill. (Yemen) Portulaca sclerocarpa A.Gray – ʻIhi makole Portulaca sedifolia A.G.Mill. (Yemen) Portulaca smallii P.Wilson – Small's purslane Portulaca suffrutescens Engelm. – Shrubby purslane Portulaca teretifolia – Roundleaf purslane Portulaca umbraticola Kunth – Wingpod purslane Portulaca villosa Cham. – Hairy purslane, ʻIhi[4][5]

Formerly placed here

• Anacampseros arachnoides (Haw.) Sims (as P. arachnoides Haw.)
• Anacampseros filamentosa subsp. filamentosa (as P. filamentosa Haw.)
• Anacampseros lanceolata subsp. lanceolata (as P. lanceolata Haw.)
• Anacampseros rufescens (Haw.) Sweet (as P. rufescens Haw.)
• Anacampseros telephiastrum DC. (as P. anacampseros L.)
• Sesuvium portulacastrum (L.) L. (as P. portulacastrum L.)
• Talinum fruticosum (L.) Juss. (as P. fruticosa L. or P. triangularis Jacq.)
• Talinum paniculatum (Jacq.) Gaertn. (as P. paniculata Jacq. or P. patens L.)[5]

Pink Portulaca Flower from volunteer plant growing in a pot indoors

Gallery

• 
  Purslane cultivar
• 
  Pickled purslane stems consumed in Armenia
• 
  Portulaca flowers
• 
  Portulaca flowers
• 
  Portulaca flowers
• 
  Portulaca flowers
• 
  Portulaca flowers
• 
  Portulaca flowers
• 
  Portulaca flowers
• 
  Portulaca flowers
• 
  Portulaca flowers
• 
  Portulaca flowers
• 
  Portulaca flowers
• 
  Portulaca flowers
• 
  Portulaca flowers
• 
  Portulaca flowers

References

1. "Genus: Portulaca L." Germplasm Resources Information Network. United States Department of Agriculture. 1998-04-28. Archived from the original on 2011-07-21. Retrieved 2011-03-04.
2. "Portulaca". Oxford English Dictionary (Online ed.). Oxford University Press. (Subscription or participating institution membership required.)
3. "Portulaca cyclophylla". APNI. Retrieved 14 January 2021.
4. "Portulaca". Integrated Taxonomic Information System. Retrieved 2011-03-04.
5. "Species Records of Portulaca". Germplasm Resources Information Network. United States Department of Agriculture. Retrieved 2011-03-04.

External links