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Ruellia simplex C.Wright
Britton's Wild Petunia
Mexican Bluebell
Mexican Petunia
Synonym(s): Ruellia caerulea, R.brittoniana, R. tweediana
Not native to Florida
This plant is an invasive exotic that is altering native plant communities by displacing native species, changing community structures or ecological functions, or hybridizing with natives.
This species should never be planted (many with this designation are prohibited by law), and generally should be removed whenever possible.
A frequent weed of disturbed sites in Florida, especially in the peninsula. Native to Mexico, the West Indies and parts of South America, this plant has been widely used as an ornamental and has also escaped cultivation in the southeastern coastal states from Texas into South Carolina.
Growing as an erect stalk up to 1m (~3 ft.) tall and forming dense colonies. Plants spread via rhizomes and by seed. Leaves vary from linear to lance-shaped. The pink to violet flowers are distinctly pedunculate with inconspicuous bracts that are linear or narrowly lanceolate.
Preferred native landscaping alternatives to Mexican petunia include Echinacea purpurea - purple coneflower, Ipomopsis rubra - standing-cypress and Lobelia cardinalis - cardinalflower.
Ruellia simplex is a member of the Acanthaceae - Acanthus family.
Other species of the Ruellia genus in the Wild Florida Photo database:
Ruellia caroliniensis - CAROLINA WILD PETUNIA
Atlas of Florida Vascular Plants (Institute for Systemic Botany) profile for this species
iNaturalist profile for this species
USDA Plant Profile for this species
Date record last modified: Dec 24, 2023
