Taxon:  Thunbergia fragrans Roxb.



Summary
Genus:
Thunbergia
Family:
Acanthaceae
Subfamily:
Thunbergioideae
Nomen number:
36604
Place of publication:
Pl. Coromandel 1:47, t. 67.  1796
Verified:
06/09/2006 ARS Systematic Botanists.
Accessions:
2 (0  active, 0  available) in National Plant Germplasm System.  (Map it)
Other conspecific taxa
Autonyms (not in current use), synonyms and invalid designations
Heterotypic Synonym(s)
Flemingia grandiflora Roxb. ex Rottler
Thunbergia volubilis Pers.

Images (3 total. Click on image for more.)
Embryo drawing

Conservation Status

Reference(s)
  1. University of Georgia Center for Invasive Species and Ecosystem Health
  2. Adams, C. 1972. Flowering plants of Jamaica
  3. Aldén, B., S. Ryman, & M. Hjertson. 2012. Svensk Kulturväxtdatabas, SKUD (Swedish Cultivated and Utility Plants Database; online resource)
  4. APHIS. Agricultural Risk Management System United States Department of Agriculture.
  5. Balick, M. J. et al. 2000. Checklist of the vascular plants of Belize, with common names and uses. Mem. New York Bot. Gard. 85
  6. Brako, L. & J. L. Zarucchi. 1993. Catalogue of the flowering plants and gymnosperms of Peru. Monogr. Syst. Bot. Missouri Bot. Gard. 45
  7. Breedlove, D. E., ed. 1981-. Flora of Chiapas.
  8. Burger, W. C., ed. 1971-. Flora costaricensis.
  9. Chinese Academy of Sciences. 1959-. Flora reipublicae popularis sinicae.
  10. Daniel, T. F. 1997. Catalog of the Acanthaceae of Belize with taxonomic and phytogeographic notes. Contr. Univ. Michigan Herb. 21:171.
  11. Dassanayake, M. D. & F. R. Fosberg, eds. 1980-. A revised handbook to the flora of Ceylon.
  12. Encke, F. et al. 1984. Zander: Handwörterbuch der Pflanzennamen, 13. Auflage
  13. Funk, V. et al. 2007. Checklist of the plants of the Guiana Shield (Venezuela: Amazonas, Bolivar, Delta Amacuro; Guyana, Surinam, French Guiana). Contr. U.S. Natl. Herb. 55:1-584.
  14. Grierson, A. J. C. & D. J. Long. 1984-. Flora of Bhutan including a record of plants from Sikkim.
  15. Hara, H. et al. 1978-1982. An enumeration of the flowering plants of Nepal.
  16. Hokche, O. et al. 2008. Nuevo catálogo de la flora vascular de Venezuela.
  17. Howard, R. 1974-1989. Flora of the lesser Antilles.
  18. Huxley, A., ed. 1992. The new Royal Horticultural Society dictionary of gardening
  19. Jørgensen, P. M. & S. León-Yánez, eds. 1999. Catalogue of the vascular plants of Ecuador. Monogr. Syst. Bot. Missouri Bot. Gard. 75
  20. León (J. S. Sauget) & Alain (E. E. Liogier). 1946-1969. Flora de Cuba
  21. Liogier, H. A. 1981-. Flora of Hispaniola: Part 1; La Flora de la Española. Part II-.
  22. Liogier, H. A. 1984-. Descriptive flora of Puerto Rico and adjacent islands.
  23. Matthew, K. M. 1983. The flora of the Tamilnadu Carnatic.
  24. Merrill, E. D. 1922-1926. An enumeration of Philippine flowering plants.
  25. Nelson, C. H. N. 2008. Catálogo de las plantas vasculares de Honduras Note: Secretaría de Recursos Naturales y Ambiente, Tegucigalpa, Honduras.
  26. Pullaiah, T. et al. 1997-1998. Flora of Andhra Pradesh (India).
  27. Saldanha, C. J. & D. H. Nicolson. 1976. Flora of Hassan district.
  28. Smith, A. C. 1979-1991. Flora vitiensis nova.
  29. Stevens, W. D. et al., eds. 2001. Flora de Nicaragua. Monogr. Syst. Bot. Missouri Bot. Gard. 85(1-3).
  30. Verma, D. M. et al. (vol. 1); V. Mudgal et al. (vol. 2). 1993-. Flora Madhya Pradesh.
  31. Wasshausen, D. C. & J. R. I. Wood. 2004. Acanthaceae of Bolivia. Contr. U.S. Natl. Herb. 49:143.
  32. Wasshausen, D. C. 1998. Acanthaceae of the Southeastern United States. Castanea 63:101.
  33. Woodson, R. E. & R. W. Schery, eds. 1943-1980. Flora of Panama.
  34. Wu Zheng-yi & P. H. Raven et al., eds. 1994-. Flora of China (English edition).
  35. Wunderlin, R. & B. Hansen. Atlas of Florida vascular plants (on-line resource).
Common names
LanguageNameAlternate namenoteseqCitation
Englishwhite thunbergia  1Wasshausen, D. C. 1998. Acanthaceae of the Southeastern United States. Castanea 63:101.
Englishwhite-lady  1Wasshausen, D. C. 1998. Acanthaceae of the Southeastern United States. Castanea 63:101.
Englishwhite-nightshade  1Adams, C. 1972. Flowering plants of Jamaica
Swedishvit thunbergia  2Aldén, B., S. Ryman, & M. Hjertson. 2012. Svensk Kulturväxtdatabas, SKUD (Swedish Cultivated and Utility Plants Database; online resource)
Transcribed Chinesewan hua cao  2Wu Zheng-yi & P. H. Raven et al., eds. 1994-. Flora of China (English edition).
Distribution
order_codeStatusContinentSubcontinentCountryStateNoteReference
1NativeAsia-TemperateChinaChinaGuangdong Sheng Wu Zheng-yi & P. H. Raven et al., eds. 1994-. Flora of China (English edition).
1NativeAsia-TemperateChinaChinaGuangxi Zhuangzu Zizhiqu Wu Zheng-yi & P. H. Raven et al., eds. 1994-. Flora of China (English edition).
1NativeAsia-TemperateChinaChinaGuizhou Sheng Wu Zheng-yi & P. H. Raven et al., eds. 1994-. Flora of China (English edition).
1NativeAsia-TemperateChinaChinaHainan Sheng Wu Zheng-yi & P. H. Raven et al., eds. 1994-. Flora of China (English edition).
1NativeAsia-TemperateChinaChinaSichuan Sheng Wu Zheng-yi & P. H. Raven et al., eds. 1994-. Flora of China (English edition).
1NativeAsia-TemperateChinaChinaYunnan Sheng Wu Zheng-yi & P. H. Raven et al., eds. 1994-. Flora of China (English edition).
1NativeAsia-TemperateEastern AsiaTaiwan  Wu Zheng-yi & P. H. Raven et al., eds. 1994-. Flora of China (English edition).
1NativeAsia-TropicalIndian SubcontinentBhutan  Grierson, A. J. C. & D. J. Long. 1984-. Flora of Bhutan including a record of plants from Sikkim.
1NativeAsia-TropicalIndian SubcontinentIndia  Wu Zheng-yi & P. H. Raven et al., eds. 1994-. Flora of China (English edition).
1NativeAsia-TropicalIndian SubcontinentNepal  Hara, H. et al. 1978-1982. An enumeration of the flowering plants of Nepal.
1NativeAsia-TropicalIndian SubcontinentSri Lanka  Dassanayake, M. D. & F. R. Fosberg, eds. 1980-. A revised handbook to the flora of Ceylon.
1NativeAsia-TropicalIndo-ChinaCambodia  Wu Zheng-yi & P. H. Raven et al., eds. 1994-. Flora of China (English edition).
1NativeAsia-TropicalIndo-ChinaLaos  Wu Zheng-yi & P. H. Raven et al., eds. 1994-. Flora of China (English edition).
1NativeAsia-TropicalIndo-ChinaThailand  Wu Zheng-yi & P. H. Raven et al., eds. 1994-. Flora of China (English edition).
1NativeAsia-TropicalIndo-ChinaVietnam  Wu Zheng-yi & P. H. Raven et al., eds. 1994-. Flora of China (English edition).
1NativeAsia-TropicalMalesiaPhilippines  Merrill, E. D. 1922-1926. An enumeration of Philippine flowering plants.
2Cultivated    widely cult. in tropics 
4NaturalizedNorthern AmericaNorthern MexicoMexicoSan Luis Potosí Breedlove, D. E., ed. 1981-. Flora of Chiapas.
4NaturalizedNorthern AmericaSoutheastern U.S.A.United StatesFlorida Wunderlin, R. & B. Hansen. Atlas of Florida vascular plants (on-line resource).
4NaturalizedNorthern AmericaSouthern MexicoMexicoChiapas Breedlove, D. E., ed. 1981-. Flora of Chiapas.
4NaturalizedNorthern AmericaSouthern MexicoMexicoHidalgo Breedlove, D. E., ed. 1981-. Flora of Chiapas.
4NaturalizedNorthern AmericaSouthern MexicoMexicoMorelos Breedlove, D. E., ed. 1981-. Flora of Chiapas.
4NaturalizedNorthern AmericaSouthern MexicoMexicoOaxaca Breedlove, D. E., ed. 1981-. Flora of Chiapas.
4NaturalizedNorthern AmericaSouthern MexicoMexicoPuebla Breedlove, D. E., ed. 1981-. Flora of Chiapas.
4NaturalizedNorthern AmericaSouthern MexicoMexicoTabasco Breedlove, D. E., ed. 1981-. Flora of Chiapas.
4NaturalizedNorthern AmericaSouthern MexicoMexicoVeracruz de Ignacio de la Llave Breedlove, D. E., ed. 1981-. Flora of Chiapas.
4NaturalizedNorthern AmericaSouthern MexicoMexicoYucatán Breedlove, D. E., ed. 1981-. Flora of Chiapas.
4NaturalizedSouthern AmericaCaribbeanAnguilla  Howard, R. 1974-1989. Flora of the lesser Antilles.
4NaturalizedSouthern AmericaCaribbeanAntigua and Barbuda  Howard, R. 1974-1989. Flora of the lesser Antilles.
4NaturalizedSouthern AmericaCaribbeanBarbados  Howard, R. 1974-1989. Flora of the lesser Antilles.
4NaturalizedSouthern AmericaCaribbeanCuba  León (J. S. Sauget) & Alain (E. E. Liogier). 1946-1969. Flora de Cuba
4NaturalizedSouthern AmericaCaribbeanGrenada  Howard, R. 1974-1989. Flora of the lesser Antilles.
4NaturalizedSouthern AmericaCaribbeanGuadeloupe  Howard, R. 1974-1989. Flora of the lesser Antilles.
4NaturalizedSouthern AmericaCaribbeanHispaniola  Liogier, H. A. 1981-. Flora of Hispaniola: Part 1; La Flora de la Española. Part II-.
4NaturalizedSouthern AmericaCaribbeanJamaica  Adams, C. 1972. Flowering plants of Jamaica
4NaturalizedSouthern AmericaCaribbeanMartinique  Howard, R. 1974-1989. Flora of the lesser Antilles.
4NaturalizedSouthern AmericaCaribbeanMontserrat  Howard, R. 1974-1989. Flora of the lesser Antilles.
4NaturalizedSouthern AmericaCaribbeanNetherlands Antilles  Howard, R. 1974-1989. Flora of the lesser Antilles.
4NaturalizedSouthern AmericaCaribbeanSt. Kitts and Nevis  Howard, R. 1974-1989. Flora of the lesser Antilles.
4NaturalizedSouthern AmericaCaribbeanSt. Lucia  Howard, R. 1974-1989. Flora of the lesser Antilles.
4NaturalizedSouthern AmericaCaribbeanSt. Vincent and Grenadines  Howard, R. 1974-1989. Flora of the lesser Antilles.
4NaturalizedSouthern AmericaCaribbeanUnited StatesPuerto Rico Liogier, H. A. 1984-. Descriptive flora of Puerto Rico and adjacent islands.
4NaturalizedSouthern AmericaCentral AmericaBelize  Balick, M. J. et al. 2000. Checklist of the vascular plants of Belize, with common names and uses. Mem. New York Bot. Gard. 85
4NaturalizedSouthern AmericaCentral AmericaCosta Rica  Burger, W. C., ed. 1971-. Flora costaricensis.
4NaturalizedSouthern AmericaCentral AmericaEl Salvador  Breedlove, D. E., ed. 1981-. Flora of Chiapas.
4NaturalizedSouthern AmericaCentral AmericaGuatemala  Breedlove, D. E., ed. 1981-. Flora of Chiapas.
4NaturalizedSouthern AmericaCentral AmericaHonduras  Nelson, C. H. N. 2008. Catálogo de las plantas vasculares de Honduras Note: Secretaría de Recursos Naturales y Ambiente, Tegucigalpa, Honduras.
4NaturalizedSouthern AmericaCentral AmericaNicaragua  Stevens, W. D. et al., eds. 2001. Flora de Nicaragua. Monogr. Syst. Bot. Missouri Bot. Gard. 85(1-3).
4NaturalizedSouthern AmericaCentral AmericaPanama  Woodson, R. E. & R. W. Schery, eds. 1943-1980. Flora of Panama.
4NaturalizedSouthern AmericaNorthern South AmericaSuriname  Funk, V. et al. 2007. Checklist of the plants of the Guiana Shield (Venezuela: Amazonas, Bolivar, Delta Amacuro; Guyana, Surinam, French Guiana). Contr. U.S. Natl. Herb. 55:1-584.
4NaturalizedSouthern AmericaNorthern South AmericaVenezuela  Hokche, O. et al. 2008. Nuevo catálogo de la flora vascular de Venezuela.
4NaturalizedSouthern AmericaWestern South AmericaBolivia  Wasshausen, D. C. & J. R. I. Wood. 2004. Acanthaceae of Bolivia. Contr. U.S. Natl. Herb. 49:143.
4NaturalizedSouthern AmericaWestern South AmericaEcuador  Jørgensen, P. M. & S. León-Yánez, eds. 1999. Catalogue of the vascular plants of Ecuador. Monogr. Syst. Bot. Missouri Bot. Gard. 75
4NaturalizedSouthern AmericaWestern South AmericaPeru  Brako, L. & J. L. Zarucchi. 1993. Catalogue of the flowering plants and gymnosperms of Peru. Monogr. Syst. Bot. Missouri Bot. Gard. 45
Native
Asia-Temperate
  • CHINA: China [Guangdong Sheng, Guangxi Zhuangzu Zizhiqu, Guizhou Sheng, Hainan Sheng, Sichuan Sheng, Yunnan Sheng]
  • EASTERN ASIA: Taiwan
Asia-Tropical
  • INDIAN SUBCONTINENT: Bhutan, India, Sri Lanka, Nepal
  • INDO-CHINA: Cambodia, Laos, Thailand, Vietnam
  • MALESIA: Philippines
Cultivated (widely cult. in tropics)
Naturalized
Northern America
  • SOUTHEASTERN U.S.A.: United States [Florida]
  • NORTHERN MEXICO: Mexico [San Luis Potosí]
  • SOUTHERN MEXICO: Mexico [Chiapas, Hidalgo, Morelos, Oaxaca, Puebla, Tabasco, Veracruz de Ignacio de la Llave, Yucatán]
Southern America
  • CARIBBEAN: Hispaniola, Anguilla, Netherlands Antilles, Antigua and Barbuda, Barbados, Cuba, Guadeloupe, Grenada, Jamaica, St. Kitts and Nevis, St. Lucia, Montserrat, Martinique, United States [Puerto Rico], St. Vincent and Grenadines
  • CENTRAL AMERICA: Belize, Costa Rica, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, Panama, El Salvador
  • NORTHERN SOUTH AMERICA: Suriname, Venezuela
  • WESTERN SOUTH AMERICA: Bolivia, Ecuador, Peru

Reference(s)
  1. Adams, C. 1972. Flowering plants of Jamaica
  2. Balick, M. J. et al. 2000. Checklist of the vascular plants of Belize, with common names and uses. Mem. New York Bot. Gard. 85
  3. Brako, L. & J. L. Zarucchi. 1993. Catalogue of the flowering plants and gymnosperms of Peru. Monogr. Syst. Bot. Missouri Bot. Gard. 45
  4. Breedlove, D. E., ed. 1981-. Flora of Chiapas.
  5. Burger, W. C., ed. 1971-. Flora costaricensis.
  6. Dassanayake, M. D. & F. R. Fosberg, eds. 1980-. A revised handbook to the flora of Ceylon.
  7. Funk, V. et al. 2007. Checklist of the plants of the Guiana Shield (Venezuela: Amazonas, Bolivar, Delta Amacuro; Guyana, Surinam, French Guiana). Contr. U.S. Natl. Herb. 55:1-584.
  8. Grierson, A. J. C. & D. J. Long. 1984-. Flora of Bhutan including a record of plants from Sikkim.
  9. Hara, H. et al. 1978-1982. An enumeration of the flowering plants of Nepal.
  10. Hokche, O. et al. 2008. Nuevo catálogo de la flora vascular de Venezuela.
  11. Howard, R. 1974-1989. Flora of the lesser Antilles.
  12. Jørgensen, P. M. & S. León-Yánez, eds. 1999. Catalogue of the vascular plants of Ecuador. Monogr. Syst. Bot. Missouri Bot. Gard. 75
  13. León (J. S. Sauget) & Alain (E. E. Liogier). 1946-1969. Flora de Cuba
  14. Liogier, H. A. 1981-. Flora of Hispaniola: Part 1; La Flora de la Española. Part II-.
  15. Liogier, H. A. 1984-. Descriptive flora of Puerto Rico and adjacent islands.
  16. Merrill, E. D. 1922-1926. An enumeration of Philippine flowering plants.
  17. Nelson, C. H. N. 2008. Catálogo de las plantas vasculares de Honduras Note: Secretaría de Recursos Naturales y Ambiente, Tegucigalpa, Honduras.
  18. Stevens, W. D. et al., eds. 2001. Flora de Nicaragua. Monogr. Syst. Bot. Missouri Bot. Gard. 85(1-3).
  19. Wasshausen, D. C. & J. R. I. Wood. 2004. Acanthaceae of Bolivia. Contr. U.S. Natl. Herb. 49:143.
  20. Woodson, R. E. & R. W. Schery, eds. 1943-1980. Flora of Panama.
  21. Wu Zheng-yi & P. H. Raven et al., eds. 1994-. Flora of China (English edition).
  22. Wunderlin, R. & B. Hansen. Atlas of Florida vascular plants (on-line resource).
Economic Uses
UsageTypeNoteReference
Environmentalornamental Huxley, A., ed. 1992. The new Royal Horticultural Society dictionary of gardening
Weed  Breedlove, D. E., ed. 1981-. Flora of Chiapas.
Cite as: USDA, Agricultural Research Service, National Plant Germplasm System. 2026. Germplasm Resources Information Network (GRIN Taxonomy). National Germplasm Resources Laboratory, Beltsville, Maryland.
URL: https://npgstest.ars-grin.gov/gringlobal/taxon/taxonomydetail?id=36604. Accessed 17 April 2026.