Mexican ruellia (Ruellia simplex)

Mexican ruellia (Ruellia simplex) is a species of plant in the Acanthaceae, an evergreen perennial, 1 meter tall, forming a colony of stalks with lance-shaped leaves. The leaves are narrowly elongated, 6-30 cm long, 1-2 cm wide, a main vein in the middle with many small pinnate veins.

The flowers are metallic blue to purple, trumpet-shaped with a corolla 5.1 cm wide, 6 cm long, five-lobed. There is a dwarf variety that is only 30 cm tall. This plant is used to treat itching, coughs and diabetes.

Kingdom: Plantae
Phylum: Tracheophyta
Subphylum: Angiospermae
Class: Magnoliopsida
Order: Lamiales
Family: Acanthaceae
Subfamily: Acanthoideae
Tribe: Ruellieae
Subtribe: Ruelliinae
Genus: Ruellia
Species: Ruellia simplex

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