Leucojum vernum, commonly called the spring snowflake,[2][3]St. Agnes' flower (for the patron saint of virgins),[4] and rarely snowbell[5] among others,[a] is a species of flowering plant in the family Amaryllidaceae.[1] It is native to central and southern Europe from Belgium to Ukraine. It is considered naturalized in north-western Europe, including Great Britain and parts of Scandinavia, and in the US states of Georgia and Florida. This spring flowering bulbousherbaceousperennial is cultivated as an ornamental for a sunny position.[7] The plant multiplies in favourable conditions to form clumps. Each plant bears a single white flower with greenish marks near the tip of the tepal, on a stem about 10–20cm (3.9–7.9in) tall, occasionally more.
Leucojum vernum is 12–35cm (4.7–13.8in) tall in flower. Its leaves, which appear at the same time as the flowers and continue to elongate during flowering, are 5–25mm wide and 10–25cm (3.9–9.8in) long, generally reaching to below the level of the flowers. The flowering stem (scape) has a small central cavity and two narrow wings. The pendent flowers appear in spring and are usually solitary, rarely in an umbel of two. The flowers have six white tepals, each with a greenish or yellowish mark just below the tip. Each tepal is 15–25mm long. The whitish seeds are about 7mm long.[2][9][10]
Close-up of flower, photographed in a garden in Bamberg, Germany
At the start of flowering
Typical Leucojum vernum var. vernum form with green marks on the tepals
Leucojum vernum var. carpathicum, with yellow tepal marks rather than green
In typical damp forest habitat in the Králova Zahrada Nature Reserve, Czech Republic
Naturalized in the Behrenhoff Landscape Park, Germany
Taxonomy
Leucojum vernum was first described by Carl Linnaeus in 1753.[1][11] The epithet vernum means "of the spring".[12]
A third variety is recognized by some sources, but not by the World Checklist of Selected Plant Families:[14]
Leucojum vernum var. vagneriStapf
Leucojum vernum var. carpathicum is distinguished by the presence of yellow rather than greenish markings at the tip of each tepal.[2] Sources that distinguish var. vagneri from var. vernum describe it as more vigorous and flowering earlier, with two flowers per scape. It comes true from seed as it does not cross with var. vernum.[2][15]
Distribution and habitat
Leucojum vernum is native to central Europe and parts of southern and western Europe, including Austria, Belgium, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Germany, Hungary, Poland, Switzerland, France, Italy, Romania, former Yugoslavia and Ukraine. It has become naturalized in other parts of Europe, including Great Britain, the Netherlands and parts of Scandinavia, and in Georgia and Florida in the United States.[1][2] It is found in damp and shady habitats, including woods, up to elevations of 1600m.[2]
1 2 3 4 5 6 Grey-Wilson, Christopher; Mathew, Brian & Blamey, Marjorie (1981). Bulbs: the bulbous plants of Europe and their allies. London: Collins. p.136. ISBN978-0-00-219211-8.
↑ A. R. Clapham, et al. Flora of the British Isles. 3rd ed. Cambridge University Press, 1987. p. 551.ISBN9780521389747
1 2 Boens, Wim (March 2017). "An overview of Leucojum". The Plantsman. New Series. 16 (1): 20–25.
↑ Straley, Gerald B. & Utech, Frederick H. "Leucojum aestivum". In Flora of North America Editorial Committee (ed.). Flora of North America (online). eFloras.org. Retrieved 2017-12-17.
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