Compared to vinca major, which is found in similar habitats, vinca minor has leaf margins that are hairless rather than ciliate, and petal tips which are flat rather than pointed. It also has somewhat broader calyx teeth, hairless rather than hairy.
Common name:
Lesser periwinkle
Family:
Scientific name:
Vinca minor
Main flower color:
Range:
Scattered locations across most of the UK; naturalised in many places, but native in the south
Height:
Up to 100 cm
Habitat:
Woodland, hedgerows
Flowers:
Purple, with a tubular corolla opening to five flat lobes, somewhat pointed at the tip. The calyx is short and hairless, with lance-shaped teeth. Flowers are up to 3 cm in diameter; they are produced singly, at the leaf nodes
Leaves:
Opposite, hairless, shiny, ovate, on short stalks, with entire margins
Season:
February to May
Rarity:
★★★★★
