Flora of Israel: Turkey tangle fogfruit

Phyla nodiflora, Lippia nodiflora, Turkey tangle fogfruit, Lippia, Turtle grass,
Hebrew: ליפיה זוחלת, Arabic: النجيل الصيني

Scientific name:   Phyla nodiflora (L.) Greene
Synonym name:   Lippia nodiflora (L.) Michaux
Common name:   Turkey tangle fogfruit, lippia, Turtle grass
Hebrew name:   ליפיה זוחלת
Arabic name:   النجيل الصيني
Egypt:   “Lebbia”
Family:   Verbenaceae, ורבניים

Life form:   Hemicryptophyte
Stems:   Procumbent, non-flowering stems rooting at the nodes; ascending flowering stems 10-30cm
Leaves:   Opposite, entire, obovate to oblanceolate, tapering into a cuneate base, margins serrate to the acute apex
Inflorescence:   Short, stout axillary spikes 5-7mm in diameter; peduncles much exceeding the subtending leaves
Flowers:   Calyx deeply lobed; corolla white, later becoming pale pinkish, slightly pubescent, corolla-lobes unequal
Fruits / pods:   2 1-seeded nutlets, ovoid, smooth
Flowering Period:   April, May, June, July, August, September
Habitat:   Humid habitats
Distribution:   Mediterranean Woodlands and Shrublands, Semi-steppe shrublands, Shrub-steppes, Deserts and extreme deserts
Chorotype:   Tropical – Med – Euro-Siberian
Summer shedding:   Perennating


Derivation of the botanical name:

Phyla, Greek phyle, φυλαί phylai, the clan-based voting groups in Greek city-states, a tribe; probably from the flowers being tightly clustered in heads.

nodiflora, nodus, a knot; florus, to bloom, to flower; flowers from nodes.
Lippia, named after Augustus Lippi (1678 – 1701), an Italian naturalist and botanist. He was killed in Abyssinia.
The Hebrew name: ליפיה, Lippia, after Augustus Lippi (1678 – 1701), an Italian naturalist and botanist.

  • The standard author abbreviation L. is used to indicate Carl Linnaeus (1707 – 1778), a Swedish botanist, physician, and zoologist, the father of modern taxonomy.
  • The standard author abbreviation Greene is used to indicate Edward Lee Greene (1843 – 1915), an American botanist.
  • The standard author abbreviation Michaux is used to indicate André Michaux (1746 – 1803), a French botanist and explorer.