Eucomis

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Eucomis
Eucomis autumnalis 2 cropped.jpg
Eucomis autumnalis
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Monocots
Order: Asparagales
Family: Asparagaceae
Subfamily: Scilloideae
Genus: Eucomis
L'Hér.
Type species
Eucomis regia
(L.) L'Hér. [1]
Synonyms [2]
  • BasilaeaJuss. ex Lam.
  • EucomeaSol. ex Salisb.

Eucomis is a genus of flowering plants in the family Asparagaceae, subfamily Scilloideae, native to southern Africa. [2] Most species of this genus are commonly referred to as pineapple flowers or pineapple lilies. They are bulbous perennials with basal rosettes of leaves and stout stems covered in star-shaped flowers with a tuft of green bracts at the top, superficially resembling a pineapple – hence the common names. [3]

Contents

Taxonomy

The genus Eucomis was first published by Charles L'Héritier in 1789. [2] [4] The name Eucomis is of Greek origin, eu- meaning "pleasing" and kome "hair of the head", [5] thus referring to the tuft of leaf-like bracts that crown the inflorescence of the species in this genus. The name was first used by Daniel Solander, who decided that Linnaeus's Fritillaria regia should be placed in a separate genus. However, Solander died before publishing the name, and was not mentioned by L'Héritier in his 1789 publication. [6] Initially, three species were placed in Eucomis: E. regia , E. nana and E. punctata. [4] (The last two are now synonyms of E. regia [7] and E. comosa [8] respectively.)

Classification

Eucomis is placed in the subfamily Scilloideae of the family Asparagaceae by those who use the APG system of plant classification, [9] and in the family Hyacinthaceae by those who use more narrowly defined families. [10] Using the subfamily Scilloideae, Eucomis is placed in the tribe Hyacintheae, subtribe Massoniinae, along with such genera as Lachenalia , Ledebouria , Massonia and Veltheimia . [11]

The species can be divided into two groups. One consists of seven mainly short, diploid species with 2n = 2x = 30 chromosomes: E. amaryllidifolia, E. bicolor, E. grimshawii, E. regia, E. schijffii, E. vandermerwei and E. zambesiaca. The other consists of five mainly larger, tetraploid species with 2n = 4x = 60 chromosomes: E. autumnalis, E. comosa, E. humilis, E. montana and E. pallidiflora. [12] The ploidy of E. sonnetteana is not known. [13]

Species

The genus includes 13 accepted species. [2]

ImageSpecies
Eucomis amaryllidifolia
Eucomis autumnalis flower.jpg Eucomis autumnalis
Pineapple Lily. Eucomis bicolor (36000512706).jpg Eucomis bicolor
Eucomis comosa var. comosa 5Dsr 5681.jpg Eucomis comosa
Eucomis grimshawii
Eucomis humilis 58318215.jpg Eucomis humilis
Eucomis montana (Ananas lelie). 06-08-2020 (d.j.b.) 01.jpg Eucomis montana
Eucomis pallidiflora Koronowka jasnokwiatowa 2023-07-30 03.jpg Eucomis pallidiflora
Eucomis regia subsp. pillansii (Hyacinthaceae) (36689665013).jpg Eucomis regia
Eucomis schijffii 271140171.jpg Eucomis schijffii
Eucomis sonnetteana
Eucomis vandermerwei00.jpg Eucomis vandermerwei
Eucomis zambesiaca 01.jpg Eucomis zambesiaca

Distribution and habitat

Eucomis is native to South Africa, Botswana, Lesotho, Eswatini, Zimbabwe and Malawi. Species can be found in grassland, forest, swamps and on river banks, but are absent from the drier regions. [14] The smaller species are more often found at higher elevations, on hilltops or other exposed places; the larger species favour less exposed habitats, such as damp gulleys and streamsides. [6]

Cultivation

Eucomis species are cultivated as ornamental plants. Most of the summer-flowering species will tolerate frost down to −5 to −10 °C (23 to 14 °F) when dormant in winter, provided they are kept dry. They flower best if given both sun exposure and moisture in summer. [6] [14] Eucomis regia grows in winter and flowers in early spring. It needs greenhouse cultivation in regions that, like Britain, have a maritime rather than a Mediterranean climate. [6]

See also

Related Research Articles

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

Scilla is a genus of about 30 to 80 species of bulb-forming perennial herbaceous plants in the family Asparagaceae, subfamily Scilloideae. Sometimes called the squills in English, they are native to woodlands, subalpine meadows, and seashores throughout Europe, Africa and the Middle East. A few species are also naturalized in Australasia and North America. Their flowers are usually blue, but white, pink, and purple types are known; most flower in early spring, but a few are autumn-flowering. Several Scilla species are valued as ornamental garden plants.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Scilloideae</span> Subfamily of bulbous monocot plants

Scilloideae is a subfamily of bulbous plants within the family Asparagaceae. Scilloideae is sometimes treated as a separate family Hyacinthaceae, named after the genus Hyacinthus. Scilloideae or Hyacinthaceae include many familiar garden plants such as Hyacinthus (hyacinths), Hyacinthoides (bluebells), Muscari and Scilla and Puschkinia. Some are important as cut flowers.

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

Bellevalia is a genus of plants in the family Asparagaceae, subfamily Scilloideae. It was first described as a genus in 1808.

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

Lachenalia is a genus of bulbous perennial plants in the family Asparagaceae, subfamily Scilloideae, which are usually found in Namibia and South Africa. Most of them have a dormancy period, but new roots will always grow every year.

<i>Eucomis comosa</i> Species of flowering plant

Eucomis comosa, the pineapple flower, pineapple lily or wine eucomis, is a species of flowering plant in the asparagus family Asparagaceae. A deciduous bulbous perennial used as an ornamental plant, it is endemic to South Africa. The white to purple flowers appear in summer and are arranged in a spike (raceme), topped by a "head" of green leaflike bracts.

<i>Eucomis autumnalis</i> Species of flowering plant

Eucomis autumnalis, the autumn pineapple flower, or autumn pineapple lily, is a species of flowering plant in the family Asparagaceae, subfamily Scilloideae, native to Malawi, Zimbabwe and southern Africa. It is a mid to late summer flowering deciduous bulbous perennial. The flower stem reaches about 40 cm (16 in), rising from a basal rosette of wavy-edged leaves. The green, yellow or white flowers are arranged in a spike (raceme), topped by a "head" of green leaflike bracts. It is grown as an ornamental garden plant and can also be used as a cut flower.

<i>Eucomis vandermerwei</i> Species of flowering plant

Eucomis vandermerwei is a South African bulbous perennial flowering plant, a member of the asparagus family, and like other members of Eucomis is commonly known as pineapple lily for its superficial resemblance to that plant, although not closely related to it. This species is one of the smallest in the genus, and is native to a high-rainfall region of western Mpumalanga in South Africa. The dense rosette of leaves, either prostrate or ascending, is heavily blotched with purple, and the leaf-edges are markedly crisped or wavy. The star-shaped burgundy flowers appear in midsummer, and are borne on a spike (raceme) topped by a "head" of leafy bracts.

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

Drimia is a genus of African, south European and south Asian flowering plants. In the APG IV classification system, it is placed in the family Asparagaceae, subfamily Scilloideae. When broadly circumscribed, the genus includes a number of other genera previously treated separately, including Litanthus, Rhodocodon, Schizobasis and Urginea.

<i>Eucomis bicolor</i> Species of flowering plant

Eucomis bicolor, the variegated pineapple lily or just pineapple lily, is a bulbous species of flowering plant in the family Asparagaceae, subfamily Scilloideae, native to Southern Africa. The pale green, purple-margined flowers are arranged in a spike (raceme), topped by a "head" of green leaflike bracts. It is cultivated as an ornamental bulbous plant, although its flowers have an unpleasant smell, attractive to the main pollinators, flies.

<i>Eucomis pallidiflora</i> Species of flowering plant

Eucomis pallidiflora, the giant pineapple lily, is a bulbous species of flowering plant in the family Asparagaceae, subfamily Scilloideae, native to southern Africa. The white to green flowers appear in summer and are arranged in a spike (raceme), topped by a "head" of green leaflike bracts. Some forms reach almost 2 m when in flower. The species is cultivated as an ornamental plant, although it is not hardy in areas where severe frosts occur.

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

Fusifilum is a genus of bulbous flowering plants in the family Asparagaceae, subfamily Scilloideae. It is distributed in southern Africa. Some sources consider that all the species should be placed in the genus Drimia.

<i>Prospero</i> (plant) Genus of flowering plants

Prospero is a genus of bulbous flowering plants in the family Asparagaceae, subfamily Scilloideae. It is distributed in Europe, around the Mediterranean, and through the Middle East to the Caucasus.

<i>Eucomis zambesiaca</i> Species of flowering plant

Eucomis zambesiaca is a bulbous plant in the family Asparagaceae, subfamily Scilloideae, native to southern Africa, from Zimbabwe through Malawi to the Limpopo Province of South Africa. One of the smaller species in the genus, it has a rosette of leaves about 45 cm (18 in) across and white flowers in a spike to about 30 cm (12 in) tall.

<i>Eucomis montana</i> Species of flowering plant

Eucomis montana is a plant species in the family Asparagaceae, subfamily Scilloideae, found in South Africa and Eswatini (Swaziland). When in flower in summer, the plant reaches a height of up to 45 cm, with a dense spike (raceme) of greenish flowers, topped by a "head" of green bracts.

Graham Dugald Duncan(born 1959) is a South African botanist and specialist bulb horticulturalist at the Kirstenbosch National Botanical Garden, Cape Town, South Africa.

<i>Eucomis regia</i> Species of flowering plant

Eucomis regia is a species of bulbous flowering plant in the family Asparagaceae, subfamily Scilloideae, native to the Cape Provinces of South Africa. It is sometimes cultivated, but requires protection in a greenhouse in temperate climates.

Eucomis amaryllidifolia is a species of flowering plant in the family Asparagaceae, subfamily Scilloideae, native to the Cape Provinces. It is a short, summer-flowering bulbous plant, with a dense spike (raceme) of yellowish-green flowers topped by a "head" of leafy bracts. In Afrikaans it is called kliplelie.

Eucomis grimshawii is a species of flowering plant in the family Asparagaceae, subfamily Scilloideae, native to the Cape Provinces. It was first described by Graham Duncan and Ben Zonneveld in 2010.

<i>Eucomis humilis</i> Species of flowering plant

Eucomis humilis is a species of flowering plant in the family Asparagaceae, subfamily Scilloideae, native to KwaZulu-Natal and Lesotho. It was first described by Baker in 1895. The greenish to purplish flowers appear in summer and are arranged in a spike (raceme), topped by a "head" of green leaflike bracts. Cultivated as an ornamental plant, it can be grown successfully outside where frosts are not too severe.

<i>Eucomis schijffii</i> Species of flowering plant

Eucomis schijffii is a bulbous species of flowering plant in the family Asparagaceae, subfamily Scilloideae, native to the Cape Provinces, KwaZulu-Natal and Lesotho. It was first described by William Frederick Reyneke in 1976. The reddish purple flowers appear in summer and are arranged in a spike (raceme), topped by a "head" of green leaflike bracts. It is cultivated as an ornamental plant and can be grown successfully outside where frosts are not too severe. The smallest of the species of Eucomis, it is particularly suited to being grown in rock gardens or containers.

References

  1. ↑ "Tropicos – Eucomis". Tropicos . Missouri Botanical Garden . Retrieved 3 October 2022.
  2. 1 2 3 4 "POWO – Eucomis". Plants of the World Online . Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew . Retrieved 3 October 2022.
  3. ↑ RHS A-Z encyclopedia of garden plants. United Kingdom: Dorling Kindersley. 2008. p. 1136. ISBN   978-1-4053-3296-5.
  4. 1 2 L'Héritier de Brutelle, Charles Louis (1789) [cover 1788]. "Eucomis". Sertum Anglicum, seu, Plantae rariores quae in hortis juxta Londinum : imprimis in horto regio Kewensi excoluntur, ab anno 1786 ad annum 1787 observata. Paris: Didot. p. 11. Retrieved 2018-10-07.
  5. ↑ Coombes, Allen J. (1994). Dictionary of Plant Names. London: Hamlyn Books. p. 70. ISBN   978-0-600-58187-1.
  6. 1 2 3 4 Compton, James (1990). "Eucomis L'Heritier". The Plantsman. 12 (3): 129–139.
  7. ↑ "POWO – Eucomis nana". Plants of the World Online . Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew . Retrieved 3 October 2022.
  8. ↑ "POWO – Eucomis punctata". Plants of the World Online . Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew . Retrieved 3 October 2022.
  9. ↑ Chase, M.W.; Reveal, J.L.; Fay, M.F. (2009). "A subfamilial classification for the expanded asparagalean families Amaryllidaceae, Asparagaceae and Xanthorrhoeaceae". Botanical Journal of the Linnean Society. 161 (2): 132–136. doi: 10.1111/j.1095-8339.2009.00999.x .
  10. ↑ Manning, J.C.; Goldblatt, P.; Fay, M.F. (2004). "A revised generic synopsis of Hyacintheaceae in sub-Saharan Africa, based on molecular evidence, including new combinations and the new tribe Pseudoprospereae". Edinburgh Journal of Botany. 60 (3): 533–568. doi: 10.1017/S0960428603000404 .
  11. ↑ Pfosser, M.; Wetschnig, W.; Ungar, S.; Prenner, G. (2004). "Phylogenetic relationships among genera of Massonieae (Hyacinthaceae) inferred from plastid DNA and seed morphology". Journal of Plant Research. 116 (2): 115–132. doi:10.1007/s10265-003-0076-8. PMID   12736783. S2CID   7554964.
  12. ↑ Zonneveld, B.J.M. & Duncan, G.D. (2010). "Genome sizes of Eucomis L'Hér. (Hyacinthaceae) and a description of the new species Eucomis grimshawii G.D.Duncan & Zonneveld". Plant Systematics and Evolution. 284 (1–2): 99–109. doi: 10.1007/s00606-009-0236-y .
  13. ↑ Crouch, Neil R.; Martínez-Azorín, Mario; Lötter, Mervyn C.; Burrows, John E.; Condy, Gillian (June 2019). "Euomis sonnetteana" (PDF). Flowering Plants of Africa. 66: 46–55. Retrieved 3 October 2022.
  14. 1 2 "PlantZAfrica – Eucomis autumnalis". PlantZAfrica. South African National Biodiversity Institute . Retrieved 3 October 2022.

Bibliography

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