Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew is a non-departmental public body in the United Kingdom sponsored by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs. An internationally important botanical research and education institution, it employs 1,100 staff. Its board of trustees is chaired by Dame Amelia Fawcett.
Rye is a grass grown extensively as a grain, a cover crop and a forage crop. It is a member of the wheat tribe (Triticeae) and is closely related to both wheat (Triticum) and barley. Rye grain is used for flour, bread, beer, crispbread, some whiskeys, some vodkas, and animal fodder. It can also be eaten whole, either as boiled rye berries or by being rolled, similar to rolled oats.
Secale is a genus of the grass tribe Triticeae, which is related to barley (Hordeum) and wheat (Triticum). The genus includes cultivated species such as rye as well as weedy and wild rye species. The most well known species of the genus is the cultivated rye, S. cereale, which is grown as a grain and forage crop. Wild and weedy rye species help provide a huge gene pool that can be used for improvement of the cultivated rye.
Cymbalaria is a genus of about 10 species of herbaceous perennial plants previously placed in the family Scrophulariaceae, but recently shown by genetic research to be in the much enlarged family Plantaginaceae.
Karel Bořivoj Presl was a Czech botanist.
Hyacinthoides hispanica, the Spanish bluebell, is a spring-flowering bulbous perennial native to the Iberian Peninsula. It is one of around a dozen species in the genus Hyacinthoides, others including the common bluebell in northwestern Europe, and the Italian bluebell further east in the Mediterranean region.
Muscari is a genus of perennial bulbous plants native to Eurasia that produce spikes of dense, most commonly blue, urn-shaped flowers resembling bunches of grapes in the spring. The common name for the genus is grape hyacinth, but they should not be confused with hyacinths. A number of species of Muscari are used as ornamental garden plants.
Arthropodium is a genus of herbaceous perennial plants in the subfamily Lomandroideae of the family Asparagaceae. It is native to Australia, New Zealand, New Caledonia and Madagascar.
Dichopogon strictus, commonly known as chocolate lily, is a herbaceous perennial plant species native to Australia.
Datisca glomerata is a species of plant native to California, Nevada, and Baja California known by the common name Durango root. It is one of only two to four species in the plant family Datiscaceae. It is an erect perennial herb with distinctive long, pointed, often sharply serrated leaves. It is said to superficially resemble Cannabis species. Its yellowish green flowers grow in clusters from the axilla of the leaf, where it joins the stem. A thick stand of the plant can form a medium-sized bush. All parts of this plant are toxic and in some areas it is considered a noxious weed. It is reported to be poisonous to cattle.
Eleocharis quinqueflora is a species of spikesedge known by the common names fewflower spikerush and few-flowered spike-rush. It is widespread across Europe, North Africa, northern Asia, and North America. There are also isolated populations in Argentina and Chile.
Calamagrostis arundinacea is a species of bunch grass in the family Poaceae, native to Eurasia, China and India. Under its synonym Calamagrostis brachytricha it has gained the Royal Horticultural Society's Award of Garden Merit.
Dichopogon is a genus of perennial herbs, native to Australia and New Guinea. It is included in the genus Arthropodium by some authorities, although recognized as a distinct genus by others. In the APG III classification system, it is placed in the family Asparagaceae, subfamily Lomandroideae.
Lumnitzera is an Indo-West Pacific mangrove genus in the family Combretaceae. An English common name is black mangrove. Lumnitzera, named after the German botanist, Stephan Lumnitzer (1750-1806), occurs in mangroves from East Africa to the Western Pacific, and northern Australia.
Galium litorale is a rare species of bedstraw in the Rubiaceae family. It is endemic to the island of Sicily in the Mediterranean Sea. In Italian it is known as caglio costiero.
Allium stamineum is a species of flowering plant in the Amaryllidaceae family. It is an onion found in the Middle East.
Glycine canescens, called the silky glycine, is a species of soybean native to Australia. A perennial living across the Outback in extremely hot and dry conditions, it is being studied for its potential to improve the cultivated soybean.
Euphorbia dulcis, sweet spurge, is a species in the genus Euphorbia, native to Europe. It is not as acrid as other Euphorbia species, hence the epithet which means "sweet". The cultivar 'Chameleon', with purple foliage, is the one most commonly planted in gardens.
Sorghum propinquum is a species of wild Sorghum native to most of tropical Asia, from India to Southeast Asia, southern China, Malesia and Papuasia. A perennial, rhizomatous diploid with the same number of chromosomes (2n=20) as the annual, non-rhizomatous diploid Sorghum bicolor, it is being studied for its potential for sorghum crop improvement. In ancient hybridization event with S. bicolor, it gave rise to Johnson grass, one of the planet's worst weeds.
Bromus intermedius, the intermediate brome, is a species of flowering plant in the family Poaceae. It is native to the Mediterranean countries and islands, and eastwards to Afghanistan. It can be found growing on serpentine soils.
