The Urban Pantheist

Photo by cottonmanifesto. Location: Mount Auburn Cemeter.

Urban species #237: Lesser periwinkle Vinca minor

As I've written before, I prefer not to use common names with modifiers like "lesser" or "greater." But the name periwinkle refers to several different plants, a group of mollusks, and a color. This plant and its relatives, all Eurasian natives, are the original periwinkle, and other definitions come from resemblances to them. (Greater periwinkle is the common name of a close relative, Vinca major.) Periwinkle is a creeping, evergreen ground cover, frequently planted across North America and Australia, and is considered invasive in both continents. It spreads where it was planted, requiring conscientious pruning to prevent it from enveloping other plants and starving shrubs of water and nutrients. It's used in urban landscaping because it is extraordinarily hardy, and it produces flowers even in cold weather. It past years it was used medicinally, and compounds derived from it are still available. Currently vincamine is being studied as a treatment for dementia.