Description
Vinca minor f. alba ‘Gertrude Jekyll’
Vinca minor is the lesser Periwinkle, the smaller of the two species most commonly found. Vinca minor f. alba ‘Gertrude Jekyll’ makes excellent ground cover in almost any soil short of a bog, growing in sun or shade. The leaves are a deep rich green and a little smaller than in ‘La Grave’. the flowers are a creamy white and produced in the Spring.
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.
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