spiderflower

plant
verifiedCite
While every effort has been made to follow citation style rules, there may be some discrepancies. Please refer to the appropriate style manual or other sources if you have any questions.
Select Citation Style
Share
Share to social media
URL
https://mainten.top/plant/spiderflower
Feedback
Corrections? Updates? Omissions? Let us know if you have suggestions to improve this article (requires login).
Thank you for your feedback

Our editors will review what you’ve submitted and determine whether to revise the article.

Also known as: Cleome

spiderflower, any of about 275 species of plants constituting the genus Cleome of the family Cleomaceae, mostly tropical annual herbs with a pungent odour.

The popular cultivated spiderflower (C. hasslerana), with dark pink flowers fading almost to white by noon, is native to sandy thickets and hillsides of southeast South America. It has five to seven leaflets and a finely spined stem. It is frequently confused with C. spinosa, which has dirty-white flowers. Rocky Mountain bee plant, or stinking clover (C. serrulata), is a summer-flowering annual of North American damp prairies and mountains. About 50 to 150 cm (20 to 60 inches) tall, it has three-parted leaves and clusters of spidery pink flowers with long stamens.

This article was most recently revised and updated by Amy Tikkanen.