Galapagos Species Database
The Galapagos Species Database shares the information about the species from our Natural History Collections.
Ruellia simplex
Petunia mexicana, Mexican petunia
Sparsely branched erect herb 30-120 cm from a basal rhizome; leaves shortly petiolate, blades ovate or elliptic to narrowly oblong or lanceolate, 5-12 x 0.3-1.5 cm, glabrous, margin entire; inflorescence of axillary, pedunculate, few-flowered cymes; bracteoles small, linear, glabrous; calyx of chasmogamous flowers 0.7-1.5 cm, lobes linear-lanceolate, glandular-puberulous; chasmogamous corollas tilted, blue or whitish, 30-40 mm long, tube 5-10 mm long, throat obconic, lobes suborbicular; capsule narrowly elliptic or oblong; seeds 16-24
It is used as a medicine and has environmental uses.
Domain
Eukaryota
Kingdom
Plantae
Phylum
Magnoliophyta
Class
Magnoliopsida (= Dicotyledoneae)
Order
Lamiales
Family
Acanthaceae
Genus
Ruellia
Species
simplex
Taxon category: Accepted
Syn.: Ruellia malacosperma Greenm.;
Origin: Introduced - established
Year of first record: 1986
Mode of introduction: Intentional
Introduction Pathway: Intentional
Subpathway: Agriculture/Horticulture
Introduced status: Naturalized
Invasive status: No data
Map of specimen collection localities or observation records for this species in our collections database.
Distribution: The native range of this species is Mexico to Tropical America. It is a perennial or subshrub and grows primarily in the subtropical biome.
- Ezcurra, C. Daniel, T. F. (2007) Ruellia simplex, un nombre más antiguo y hasta ahora ignorado para Ruellia tweediana y Ruellia coerulea (Acanthaceae) Ezcurra, C., & Daniel, T. F. (2007). "Ruellia simplex, un nombre más antiguo y hasta ahora ignorado para Ruellia tweediana y Ruellia coerulea (Acanthaceae)." Darwiniana, Nueva Serie, 45(2), 201–203.
- Sauvalle, F. A. (1873) Flora Cubana Flora Cubana [Fl. Cub.]. Reimpresión de una serie publicada en Anal. Acad. Ci. Habana, Rev. ci., vols. 5 (1868-1869).
- Wasshausen, Dieter C. Wood, J. R. I. (2004) Acanthaceae of Bolivia. Contributions from the United States National Herbarium. Wasshausen, Dieter C., & Wood, J. R. I. 2004. "Acanthaceae of Bolivia." Contributions from the United States National Herbarium, volumen 49: páginas 1-152. Smithsonian Institution.
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This page should be cited as follows:
"Galapagos Species Database, Ruellia simplex", dataZone. Charles Darwin Foundation, https://datazone.darwinfoundation.org/en/checklist/?species=25594. Accessed 6 November 2026.