Asiatic Dayflower

Commelina communis L.

Commelinaceae (Spiderwort Family)

▲ ▼ large colony in a flower bed in Illinois

▲ ▼ flowers and stems

▲ flower showing spathe open on both sides

▲ flower detail, showing 3 petals

▲ ▼ leaves and flowering stems on a colony in Missouri

▲ ▼ leaf collar region, showing a few short hairs

Dayflowers:

Several species present in Missouri, some are summer annuals, but some species are perennial here, with creeping roots and stems rooting at the nodes
Are monocots in the Spiderwort (Commelinaceae) Family
All have light-green to dark green, alternate, oval-pointed leaves with parallel veins (is a monocot) in the Spiderwort (Commelinaceae) Family
All have small, blue flowers that have two deep blue upper petals (and sometimes one much-smaller white lower petal); flowers are in little boat-shaped spathes (sepal-like structures) in the axils of the leaves
Can reproduce by seed and vegetative means--cut stems can root readily in moist ground
Prefers moist, fertile soil--gardens, cultivated fields--but also will grow on roadsides, non-crop areas
Has a sprawling growth habit--long stems can create a tangled web in gardens, flower beds
Is related to several houseplant species--wandering jew, inch plant--and the native perennial spiderwort

Asiatic Dayflower:

An annual weed, invasive in summer annual crops, native to Asia
Can have upright or sprawling stems, and may have rough white hairs on leaf surfaces
On this species, there are 3 petals (two upper, large, blue; one lower, very small, white); creeping or spreading dayflower lacks the lower white petal
The boat-shaped spathes are open on both ends (not closed on one end)--sort of like a taco; erect dayflower spathes are closed on the side toward the stem
The inner part of the leaf sheath where it joins the stem is somewhat hairy