Ruellia simplex
Mexican Ruellia is a vigorous perennial featuring dark green lanceolate leaves and trumpet-shaped metallic-purple flowers. Popular in landscapes for its hardiness, it escapes into natural drainage draws and wetland margins via explosive seed pods and creeping rhizomes, forming dense monocultures that displace native riparian groundcover species.
Height: 1-3 ft.
Spread: 2-5 ft.
Foliage: Deciduous
Growth Rate: Moderate
Water Need: Low
Sun Need: Part Sun, Full Sun
Substrate / Soil: Limestone, Loam, Gravelly
Bloom Season: May, Jun, Jul, Aug, Sep, Oct
This species serves as an essential host plant for caterpillar larvae of: Common Buckeye, White Peacock, Malachite.
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