Andrachne

Description

Andrachne is a genus of flowering plants in the family Phyllanthaceae described by Linnaeus in 1753. It is one of eight genera in the tribe Poranthereae. They are monoecious herbs or subshrubs, native to semideserts and desert margins of the Americas, southern Europe, North Africa, and South Asia. Linnaeus took the name from Theophrastus, but it is not clear to which plant Theophrastus applied the name. Actually, the etymology of the genus name corresponds to the Ancient Greek word ἀνδράχνη (andrákhnē), meaning either "common purslane" (Portulaca oleracea) or "wild strawberry" (Fragaria vesca).