Haemanthus

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Haemanthus
Haemanthus albiflos.jpg
Haemanthus albiflos
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Monocots
Order: Asparagales
Family: Amaryllidaceae
Subfamily: Amaryllidoideae
Genus: Haemanthus
L.
Type species
Haemanthus coccineus
L.
Species

See text

Haemanthus coccineus L.
Nikolaus Joseph von Jacquin 1798 Haemanthus coccineus02.jpg
Haemanthus coccineus L.
Haemanthus albiflos Jacq.
Nikolaus Joseph von Jacquin 1798 Haemanthus albiflos03.jpg
Haemanthus albiflos Jacq.

Haemanthus is a Southern African genus of flowering plants in the family Amaryllidaceae, subfamily Amaryllidoideae. [1] Members of the genus are known as blood lily and paintbrush lily. There are some 22 known species, native to South Africa, Botswana, Namibia, Lesotho and Eswatini. About 15 species occur in the winter rainfall region of Namaqualand and the Western Cape, the remainder being found in the summer rainfall region, with one species Haemanthus albiflos occurring in both regions.

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Description

Most of the species have brush-like flowerheads enclosed in four or more membranous to fleshy spathe bracts which usually match the flower colour and, like sepals, protect the flowerheads from damage and desiccation. The flowers produce abundant nectar and pollen and a faint smell unattractive to humans. Fruits are mostly globose and when ripe, range through bright red, to pink, orange and white, and are usually aromatic. Three of the species, H. albiflos, H. deformis and H. pauculifolius are evergreen; these three species have bulbs that are only partly buried, the exposed section often turning bright green. The winter rainfall region's bulbs on the other hand are mostly from arid habitats and are found fairly deep below the surface, usually flowering before producing leaves. The genus produces relatively large bulbs that act as food and water storage organs, and consist of fleshy leafbases or tunics that may be arranged in two obvious ranks - termed a distichous arrangement. The morphology of the bulbs is useful in taxonomy and identification.

Haemanthus have from one to six leaves, ranging from broad, leathery and prostrate to narrow, crisped or succulent and erect, with a variety of surface textures from smooth to extremely hairy or even sticky. A few species such as H. unifoliatus and H. nortieri, usually produce only a single erect, broad leaf. H. coccineus and H. sanguineus were two of the first species in this genus to be described and because of their reddish flowers, gave rise to the generic name, being Greek for 'blood flower'. Haemanthus is found from Namibia through Namaqualand to the Western Cape and then through the Southern Cape to the Eastern Cape as far north as KwaZulu-Natal and the Transvaal. Haemanthus species are extremely variable in their habitat requirements - from coastal dunes to mountain tops, rocky ledges to seasonally-inundated gravel plains and bogs. Some species, such as H. canaliculatus, are to some extent fire-dependent in that they need occasional burning of their fynbos habitat to clear undergrowth in order to flower.

Taxonomy

The genus Haemanthus was created in 1753 by Linnaeus. The name is derived from Greek words αίμα, haima and ανθος, anthos, meaning "blood flower". In 1838 the eccentric Constantine Samuel Rafinesque, placed H. pubescens in a new genus Leucodesmis, H. coccineus in Perihema, and H. carneus in Serena. The troubled English botanist Richard Anthony Salisbury (1761–1829) in his 1866 posthumous publication 'Genera of Plants', placed H. amarylloides under Melicho and H. albiflos under Diacles.

The genus was illustrated in Nikolaus Joseph von Jacquin's description of the rarities in the glasshouses of Schönbrunn, Plantarum Rariorum Horti Caesarei Schoenbrunnensis Descriptiones Et Icones (1797–98). The first thorough taxonomic treatment of the genus was by Baker in 1896 and published in Flora Capensis. Nothing further was done until 1976 when Friis & Nordal published a brief review recognising only 6 species and reinstating Scadoxus . Dierdré Snijman's work published in 1984, described 21 distinct species, with H. pauculifolius, occurring only on the Transvaal Drakensberg Escarpment, later being added.

Species

A list of all the species accepted by the World Checklist of Selected Plant Familiesas of June 2011 is given below. Species formerly included in Haemanthus have been transferred to a number of genera, including Scadoxus . For example, Haemanthus grandiflorus is now Scadoxus multiflorus . [2]

ImageScientific nameDistribution
Haemanthus albiflos1C2000.jpg Haemanthus albiflos Jacq. southern Cape through the Eastern Cape to KwaZulu-Natal
Haemanthus amarylloides00.jpg Haemanthus amarylloides Jacq. between Springbok and Grootvlei in Namaqualand, and along the Bokkeveld Mountains escarpment to Gifberg near Vanrhynsdorp.
Haemanthus avasmontanus Dinter south-east of Windhoek in central Namibia.
Haemanthus barkerae SnijmanWestern Cape from the Bokkeveld Mountains near Nieuwoudtville and the foothills of the Roggeveld Mountains, to the Hantamsberg near Calvinia, and bounded to the north and south by Loeriesfontein and the Tanqua Karoo.
Haemanthus canaliculatus LevynsWestern Cape between Betty's Bay and Rooiels
509 Haemanthus carneus.jpg Haemanthus carneus Ker Gawler the Orange Free State, KwaZulu-Natal and the Eastern Cape near Grahamstown and Somerset East
Haemanthus coccineus 150915-2.jpg Haemanthus coccineus L. Namibia, to South Africa in the Cape Peninsula, to the Keiskamma River in the Eastern Cape
Haemanthus crispus SnijmanNamaqualand
Haemanthus dasyphyllus SnijmanLoeriesfontein in Namaqualand.
Haemanthus deformis 1DS-II 1-8796.jpg Haemanthus deformis Hook.f. KwaZulu-Natal
Haemanthus graniticus SnijmanNamaqualand
Haemanthus humilis subsp. hirsutus 1DS-II 2-5395.jpg Haemanthus humilis Jacq. western Transvaal, Orange Free State, northern and eastern Cape.
Haemanthus lanceifolius00.jpg Haemanthus lanceifolius Jacq. Namaqualand
Haemanthus montanus 1DS-II 1-C5414.jpg Haemanthus montanus Baker eastern region of South Africa
Haemanthus namaquensis R.A. Dyer Namaqualand
Haemanthus nortieri 5Dsr 0556.jpg Haemanthus nortieri Isaacnorth of Clanwilliam
Haemanthus pauculifolius 1DS-II 3-4539.jpg Haemanthus pauculifolius Snijman & A.E.van WykEswatini and from the Middle Pongolo River Reservoir as well as Blyderivierspoort to Pigg's Peak in KwaZulu-Natal and Mpumalanga.
Haemanthus pubescens L.f (3).jpg Haemanthus pubescens L. southern Namibia and Namaqualand
Haemanthus pumilio00.jpg Haemanthus pumilio Jacq. Western Cape
Haemanthus sanguineus - Cape Flats vegetation SA2.jpg Haemanthus sanguineus Jacq. Western Cape.
Haemanthus tristis Snijmansoutheast Tanqua Karoo
Haemanthus unifoliatus SnijmanCape Province, Namaqualand

Cultivation

Haemanthus species do best in large, well-drained containers or planted out in a rockery. Depending on species, they should have full sun or partial shade - winter rainfall species preferring full sun, while summer rainfall and evergreen species need partial shade. Most species are extremely tolerant of poor soil, but should not be disturbed if they are to flower. Propagation can be by offsets (adventitious bulblets), leaf cuttings and by germination of seed. Seeds when ripe are generally surrounded by a sticky pulp, producing long silken threads which presumably are useful in anchoring the seed when germinating and in the early stages of growth.

See also

Related Research Articles

<i>Amaryllis</i> Genus of plants

Amaryllis is the only genus in the subtribe Amaryllidinae. It is a small genus of flowering bulbs, with two species. The better known of the two, Amaryllis belladonna, is a native of the Western Cape region of South Africa, particularly the rocky southwest area between the Olifants River Valley and Knysna.

<i>Brunsvigia</i> Genus of flowering plants

Brunsvigia is a genus of African flowering plants in the family Amaryllidaceae, subfamily Amaryllidoideae. It contains about 20 species native to southeastern and southern Africa from Tanzania to the Cape Provinces of South Africa.

<i>Haemanthus albiflos</i> Species of flowering plant

Haemanthus albiflos is a species of flowering plant in the family Amaryllidaceae, native to the coast and mountains of South Africa. It is sometimes given the English name paintbrush, not to be confused with Castilleja species which also have this name. It is an evergreen bulbous perennial geophyte, prized horticulturally for its unusual appearance and extreme tolerance of neglect. H. albiflos is the only Haemanthus species found in both winter and summer rainfall regions, and has a mainly coastal distribution from the southern Cape through the Eastern Cape to KwaZulu-Natal, showing a preference for cool, shady spots.

<i>Haemanthus amarylloides</i> Species of flowering plant

Haemanthus amarylloides Jacq. is an endemic South African bulbous plant. It was first described in 1804 by Nikolaus Joseph von Jacquin from specimens sent to the Schönbrunn Palace gardens by the collectors Boos and Scholl. Franz Boos was an Austrian botanist who, with Franz Bredemeyer, made up Emperor Joseph II's gardening team. Boos and his assistant Georg Scholl, were collecting Cape plants for the imperial gardens. These collections were transported to Vienna by Nicolas Thomas Baudin, who had been carefully briefed by Boos on the techniques used for keeping plants and animals alive on long ship voyages.

<i>Haemanthus coccineus</i> Species of flowering plant

Haemanthus coccineus, the blood flower, blood lily or paintbrush lily, is a species of flowering plant in the amaryllis family Amaryllidaceae, native to Southern Africa. Growing to 35 cm (14 in) tall and wide, it is a bulbous perennial with short brown stems surmounted by red flowers, the flowers appearing in spring and summer, before the strap-shaped leaves.

<i>Haemanthus canaliculatus</i> Species of flowering plant

Haemanthus canaliculatus is a South African bulbous geophyte in the genus Haemanthus. It is found only over a small area in the Western Cape between Kleinmond and Rooiels, growing at about 30 m above sea level with an annual rainfall of 650 mm. Its favoured habitat is under dense bush in seasonally inundated shallow depressions, where it usually occurs in clumps. The leaf-bases or tunics of the bulb are thick, fleshy, distichous and loosely separated as in the spread fingers on a hand cf. Haemanthus pubescens. Leaves are from one to four, red-barred at the base, held in a sub-erect position and appear after the flowers. The peduncle is up to 200 mm long with 5-7 spathe valves that are bright red to pink in colour. Fruits are about 20 mm in diameter and reddish. Seeds are shiny and deep red.

<i>Strumaria</i> Genus of plants

Strumaria is a genus of African plants in Amaryllis family, subfamily Amaryllidoideae. The genus is known in nature only from South Africa, Lesotho and Namibia. Almost all species flower in the autumn and are cultivated as ornamental bulbous plants.

<i>Haemanthus crispus</i> Species of flowering plant

Haemanthus crispus is a South African bulbous geophyte in the genus Haemanthus and occurring in Namaqualand which lies in the winter rainfall region. It is a common species and is found from Steinkopf to the Olifants River, growing from the coastal flats eastwards onto the stony, lower slopes of the first terrace, usually in heavy soils and often in the shade of low succulent shrubs.

<i>Haemanthus dasyphyllus</i> Species of flowering plant

Haemanthus dasyphyllus is an endemic South African bulbous geophyte, one of about 20 species in the genus Haemanthus, and is found near Loeriesfontein in Namaqualand.

<i>Haemanthus pubescens</i> Species of flowering plant

Haemanthus pubescens is an endemic South African bulbous geophyte in the genus Haemanthus.

<i>Scadoxus puniceus</i> Species of flowering plant

Scadoxus puniceus, commonly known as the paintbrush lily, is a species of bulbous plant. It is native to much of southern and eastern Africa: Ethiopia, Sudan, Tanzania, Malawi, Mozambique, Zambia, Zimbabwe, Botswana, Eswatini (Swaziland), and South Africa. Scadoxus puniceus can be found in cool, shady habitat such as ravines and forests, where it is often found in moist leaf litter. Other common names include snake lily, royal paintbrush, King-of-Candida, African blood lily (English), rooikwas (Afrikaans), isisphompho, and umgola (Zulu). There are nine species of Scadoxus of which three, S. puniceus, S. multiflorus and S.membranaceus, occur in South Africa.

<i>Scadoxus</i> Genus of flowering plants

Scadoxus is a genus of African and Arabian plants in the Amaryllis family, subfamily Amaryllidoideae. The English names blood lily or blood flower are used for some of the species. The genus has close affinities with Haemanthus. Species of Scadoxus are grown as ornamental plants for their brilliantly coloured flowers, either in containers or in the ground in frost-free climates. Although some species have been used in traditional medicine, they contain poisonous alkaloids.

Paintbrush lily is a common name for several plants and may refer to:

<i>Scadoxus multiflorus</i> Species of flowering plant

Scadoxus multiflorus is a bulbous plant native to most of sub-Saharan Africa from Senegal to Somalia to South Africa. It is also native to Arabian Peninsula and to the Seychelles. It is naturalized in Mexico and in the Chagos Archipelago.It is also found in Indian peninsula. It is grown as an ornamental plant for its brilliantly coloured flowers, either in containers or in the ground in where the climate is suitable. There are three recognized subspecies. Strongly toxic like other Scadoxus species, it has been used as a component of arrow poisons and fishing poisons, as well as in traditional medicine. Common names, some of which are used for other species, include blood lily, ball lily, fireball lily, blood flower, Katherine-wheel, oxtongue lily, poison root and powderpuff lily.

<i>Scadoxus cinnabarinus</i> Species of flowering plant

Scadoxus cinnabarinus is a herbaceous plant from tropical rainforest in Africa. It is native to Western and Central Africa from Sierra Leone in the far west to Angola in the south. It has been reported from Ghana, Côte d'Ivoire, Nigeria, Niger, Sierra Leone, Central African Republic, Cameroon, Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, São Tomé, Zaire, Uganda, and Angola.

<i>Scadoxus membranaceus</i> Species of plant

Scadoxus membranaceus is a flowering plant in the Amaryllidaceae family. It is a bulbous plant from South Africa. The smallest of the species of Scadoxus, it is sometimes cultivated as an ornamental plant where a minimum temperature of 5 °C (41 °F) can be maintained.

Scadoxus pseudocaulus is a herbaceous plant native to Nigeria, Equatorial Guinea, Cameroon and Gabon. Similar in many respects to Scadoxus cinnabarinus, it is cultivated as an ornamental plant but has proved reluctant to flower.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Haemantheae</span> Tribe of flowering plants

Haemantheae are a tribe of subfamily Amaryllidoideae. They are herbaceous monocot perennial flowering plants with a predominantly African distribution. Three subtribes are proposed and six genera including the type genus, Haemanthus, are included. They are characterised by the presence of baccate (berry) fruit.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Haemanthinae</span> Subtribe of flowering plants

Haemanthinae is a small subtribe of Haemantheae, and therefore within the African clades of Amaryllidoideae. It consists of two genera, Haemanthus, and Scadoxus.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dierdré A. Snijman</span> South African botanist

Dierdré "Dee" Anne Snijman is a South African botanist and plant taxonomist who is notable for studying and writing extensively on bulbs. She has described over 120 species and has written comprehensive works on South African flora. She received the 1997 Herbert Medal from the International Bulb Society for her research on Amaryllis.

References

  1. Stevens, P.F., Angiosperm Phylogeny Website: Asparagales: Amaryllidoideae
  2. WCSP (2011), World Checklist of Selected Plant Families, The Board of Trustees of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew , retrieved 2011-05-25