Species

Convolvulus arvensis

Etymology

Convolvulus: From Latin convolvere, which means to twine around
arvensis: Growing in arable fields

Common Name(s)

convolvulus

Family

Convolvulaceae

Flora Category

Vascular - Exotic

NVS Species Code

CONARV

The National Vegetation Survey (NVS) Databank is a physical archive and electronic databank containing records of over 94,000 vegetation survey plots - including data from over 19,000 permanent plots. NVS maintains a standard set of species code abbreviations that correspond to standard scientific plant names from the Ngä Tipu o Aotearoa - New Zealand Plants database.

Structural Class

Dicotyledonous Herbs other than Composites

Habitat

Terrestrial. Mostly waste places and arable fields.

Features

Rhizomatous perennial with slender, creeping or trailing, angular, usu. hairy stems. Petioles 5~20mm long. Lamina 2~4 x 1~2cm, triangular or oblong-ovate (v. rarely linear), hastate or sagittate, entire except often for pair of teeth near base, usually glabrous or sparsely hairy (rarely moderately hairy), often glaucous; sinus shallow or base approx. truncate; apex rounded and mucronulate. Infl. axillary, few-flowered; peduncles often as or slightly more frequent than leaves; pedicels slender, glabrous. Bracts 2~4mm long, hairy & linear, more than 1cm below calyx. Sepals about 4mm long, obtuse, outer ciliate often hairy, subequal. Corolla 1.5~2cm long, broadly funnelform, pink or whitish with deep pink mid-petaline bands, very rarely completely white. Stamens subequal; filaments widened and puberulent towards base. Stigmas filiform, much less than style. Capsule 6~8mm long, globose ovoid. Seed dark & smooth. (Webb et. al., 1988)

Similar Taxa

Stems and leaves are usually somewhat hairy, leaves dull green. Flowers sometimes singly but sometimes in groups. Small, linear, hairy bracts about 1cm below the sepals. Flowers up to 2cm long, usually somewhat pinkish.

Flowering

November, December, January, February, March

Flower Colours

Red / Pink,White

Year Naturalised

1880

Origin

N temperate

Reason For Introduction
Accidental

Life Cycle Comments
Perennial.

Dispersal
Mainly distributed by soil movement? [Melanie Newfield Jan 04].

This page last updated on 18 Jan 2010