Ipomoea angustifolia Jacq.
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Authority
Britton, Nathaniel L. Flora Borinqueña.
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Family
Convolvulaceae
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Scientific Name
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Description
Species Description - This attractive , little, white -flowered vine, widely distributed in Africa, is known to grow, in America, only in Georgia, where it was introduced into waste ground, and in sandy soil on the northern coastal plain of Porto Rico, where it is locally plentiful, and one of the characteristic plants of these sandy areas, appearing like an indigenous species; for want of evidence otherwise, we are so regarding it, but this natural geographic distribution is very unusual and, presumably, makes necessary the conclusion that seeds were long ago transported from some point in Africa to Porto Rico; independent evolution of a species in such widely separated regions is improbable. A much simpler conclusion would be that seeds have been brought to Porto Rico through human agency, but there are no records to support this view. For an account of the genus, we refer to our description of Ipomoea polyanthes. Ipomoea angustifolia (narrow -leaved) usually has several stems from a deep, woody root, smooth, prostrate, about 2 meters long, or shorter. The nearly stalkless, very narrow, smooth leaves are narrowly lance-shaped from 2 to 5 centimeters long, from 0.5 to 6 millimeters wide, long-pointed, with a few, pointed lobes or teeth near the somewhat halberd -shaped base. The very slender flower-stalks are about as long as the leaves, or shorter, bearing 1 or few flowers; the sepals are oblong, sharply tipped, about 3 millimeters long; the white corolla is from 1 to 1.5 centimeters long. The nearly globular capsule is about 6 millimeters in diameter, the seeds smooth.
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Discussion
Narrow-leaved Morning-glory Morning-glory Family Ipomoea angusitfolia Jacquin, Collectanea 2: 367. 1788. Convolvulus filicaulis Vahl , Symbolae Botanicae 3: 24. 1794.