Vinca difformis

Description

Vinca difformis

A special vinca from the Western Mediterranean. At first impressions it looks a lot like Vinca major with its large fresh green foliage; that is until mid October, when it is studded with large, palest pearly blue periwinkle flowers which appear throughout Winter into early Spring. The flowers age to pure white. Its Mediterranean roots do make it somewhat tender. It is reliable in the South West but in less favourable climates it requires the shelter of a warm wall. It appreciates some sun. A charming Winter plant. 30 x 60cm, spreading.

Periwinkle – Vinca

Lesser Periwinkle has more congested growth than either of the two larger evergreen species, making the best choice for ground cover. There is pale ring around each flower’s throat.

There is something quite curious about the flowers of the periwinkle that is not immediately obvious, but quite striking when you look at it more closely. The petals are peculiar in not being symmetrical. If you divide each petal from the centre of the flower to the point you will find that the left lobe is far larger than the right lobe. This is a situation that is in fact very unusual in the plant world.

Medicine

Over 90 separate alkyloids have been isolated from Vinca, many quite toxic. All parts of the plant are poisonous, though in the garden they are unlikely to cause any bother. Just don’t go chewing them. The closely related Madagascar Periwinkle, Catharanthus contains the alkyloids vinblastine and vincristine, both used to produce  drugs that are useful in targetting certain cancers.

Derivation

Vinca derives from the Latin ‘vincio’ = to bind. Thius refers to the use of the long shoots to tie things together and for their use twining around wreaths.

Links

Botanical Style Photographs