Dierama

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Dierama
Dierama igneum1UME.jpg
Dierama igneum
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Monocots
Order: Asparagales
Family: Iridaceae
Subfamily: Crocoideae
Tribe: Croceae
Genus: Dierama
K.Koch
Type species
Dierama ensifolium
Koch & Bouché
Species

See text

Dierama is a genus of flowering plants in the family Iridaceae. Common names include hairbells, angel's fishing rod, fairybells, and wandflowers in English and grasklokkies (= grass-bells) in Afrikaans. [1] They are native to Africa, with most occurring in the southern regions of the continent. [2] The center of diversity is the province of KwaZulu-Natal in eastern South Africa. [1]

Contents

Dierama dracomontanum Dierama dracomontanum1UME.jpg
Dierama dracomontanum

Description

Plants of this genus are evergreen perennial herbs growing from large corms with fibrous tunics. The lowest two or three leaves are cataphylls that sheath the lower stem and become dry. The thin, wiry, branching stem may bend and droop when in flower. It is lined with leaves that have linear blades with thick longitudinal veins and often no midrib. The inflorescence is a panicle of several spikes of flowers. The spikes may hang like bells or grow erect. The bracts around the flowers are usually dry, thin, membranous, translucent, and streaked or veined with brown. The bell-shaped flowers of most wild species are pink; red, purple, yellow, and white taxa also exist. [2] There are many cultivars in a range of colors, sometimes with spots of yellow or blue. [3] The fruit is a spherical capsule. [2]

Dierama pendulum Dierama pendulum Hairbells Flower 0560.jpg
Dierama pendulum
Dierama nixonianum Dierama nixonianum (Hilliard) 0502.jpg
Dierama nixonianum

Etymology

The genus name is derived from the Greek word dierama, meaning "funnel," and alludes to the flower shape. [4]

Diversity

There are about 44 species. [2]

Species include: [5] [6]

Uses

Some species of dierama are cultivated as ornamental plants, such as the purple-pink-flowered D. pendulum. [12] The South African endemic D. erectum is grown for the large, pink flowers it bears on tall, erect stems. It is prone to attack by the bean weevil Urodon lilii . [14]

Certain species have been used in traditional African medicine and spiritual practices. D. erectum is used as an enema by the Sotho people and as a treatment for stomach problems. The corm of the plant is a fertility charm for bringing a good harvest. [14]

Conservation

Some species, especially the narrow endemics, are decreasing in abundance due to loss of habitat. The South African natives D. ambiguum, D. erectum, and D. nixonianum are considered endangered species. [6]

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  3. Tinnea apiculataRobyns & Lebrun - eastern Africa from Rwanda to Mozambique
  4. Tinnea barbataVollesen - Eswatini, northern South Africa
  5. Tinnea barteriGürke - western Africa
  6. Tinnea benguellensisGürke - Angola
  7. Tinnea coeruleaGürke - DRC, Zambia, Angola
  8. Tinnea eriocalyxWelw. - DRC, Angola, Botswana, Namibia
  9. Tinnea galpiniiBriq. - Eswatini, Mozambique, South Africa
  10. Tinnea gossweileriRobyns & Lebrun - Angola
  11. Tinnea gracilisGürke - Tanzania to Zambia
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  14. Tinnea platyphyllaBriq. - DRC
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  16. Tinnea somalensisGürke ex Chiov. - Ethiopia
  17. Tinnea vesiculosaGürke - Tanzania, Malawi
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  2. Fuerstia africanaT.C.E.Fr. - East Africa
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  4. Fuerstia bartsioides(Baker) G.Taylor - South Sudan
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  8. Fuerstia ternataA.J.Paton - Tanzania
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References

  1. 1 2 Glen, H. Dierama reynoldsii. South African National Biodiversity Institute. 2005.
  2. 1 2 3 4 Dierama K.Koch. Flora Zambesiaca. Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew.
  3. ↑ Hilliard, O. M. and B. L. Burtt. (1991). Dierama: the Hairbells of Africa. Randburg: Acorn Books. ISBN   978-1-874802-01-3.
  4. ↑ Manning, J. and P. Goldblatt. (2008). The Iris Family: Natural History & Classification. Portland, Oregon: Timber Press. pp. 91–93. ISBN   978-0-88192-897-6.
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 Arnold, T. H. and B. C. de Wet, Eds. Plants of Southern Africa: Names & Distribution. In: Memoirs of the Botanical Survey of South Africa No. 62. National Botanical Institute, South Africa. 1993. ISBN   1-874907-03-X
  6. 1 2 Dierama. Red List of South African Plants. South African National Biodiversity Institute.
  7. ↑ Dierama cupuliflorum. World Checklist of Selected Plant Families. Kew.
  8. ↑ Dierama densiflorum. World Checklist of Selected Plant Families. Kew.
  9. ↑ Dierama inyangense. World Checklist of Selected Plant Families. Kew.
  10. ↑ Dierama longistylum. Flora Zambesiaca. Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew.
  11. ↑ Dierama parviflorum. Flora Zambesiaca. Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew.
  12. 1 2 Dierama pendulum. Missouri Botanical Garden.
  13. ↑ Dierama plowesii. World Checklist of Selected Plant Families. Kew.
  14. 1 2 Koetle, M. J., et al. (2010). In vitro regeneration in Dierama erectum Hilliard. Plant Cell, Tissue and Organ Culture 103(1) 23-31.
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