Spreading Snakeherb
Dyschoriste decumbens
Family: Acanthaceae
These are low-growing perennial plants, usually mostly evergreen in the low desert. They usually reach about 8” wide. Purple flowers appear in warm weather.
Plant in part sun in the low desert, provide moderate to regular water with good drainage. Plants should be quite hardy since in the wild they are found in the oak woodland and grassland in southern Arizona where temperatures get quite cold.
Larval hosts for the following butterfly species:
Pale-banded Crescent (Anthanassa tulcis)
Rosita Patch (Chlosyne rosita)
Vesta Crescent (Phyciodes graphica)
Fritzgaertner's Flat (Celaenorrhinus fritzgaertneri)
Some species of Dyschoriste are used medicinally.
Photo by Sue Carnahan, SEINET
Dyschoriste decumbens on iNaturalist
This species was formerly known as Dyschoriste schiedeana var. decumbens, but this variety is now considered its own species. The genus Dyschoriste originates from the Greek, dys meaning 'with difficulty' and choristos 'separated'; referring to the valves of the capsules which adhere tightly to each other.There are 98 species native to the tropics and subtropics of the Americas, sub-Saharan Africa, and southern Asia. There are 6 species in Dyschoriste in the United States, all in southern border states.
Found on dry soils on plains, mesas, and foothills, from 4,000-5,500’ from the southwestern United States south through central Mexico.