''Amsonia'' is a
genus
Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms as well as viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus comes above species and below family. In binomial nom ...
of
flowering plant
Flowering plants are plants that bear flowers and fruits, and form the clade Angiospermae (), commonly called angiosperms. The term "angiosperm" is derived from the Greek words ('container, vessel') and ('seed'), and refers to those plants th ...
s in the
dogbane
Dogbane, dog-bane, dog's bane, and other variations, some of them regional and some transient, are names for certain plants that are reputed to kill or repel dogs; "bane" originally meant "slayer", and was later applied to plants to indicate tha ...
family,
Apocynaceae
Apocynaceae (from ''Apocynum'', Greek for "dog-away") is a family of flowering plants that includes trees, shrubs, herbs, stem succulents, and vines, commonly known as the dogbane family, because some taxa were used as dog poison Members of ...
, first described as a genus in 1788. It is native primarily to
North America with one species in
East Asia
East Asia is the eastern region of Asia, which is defined in both Geography, geographical and culture, ethno-cultural terms. The modern State (polity), states of East Asia include China, Japan, Mongolia, North Korea, South Korea, and Taiwan. ...
and another in the eastern
Mediterranean
The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean Basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Western Europe, Western and Southern Europe and Anatolia, on the south by North Africa ...
.
[Flora of China Vol. 16 Page 156 水甘草属 shui gan cao shu ''Amsonia'' Walter, Fl. Carol. 98. 1788. ]
/ref> It was named in honor of the American physician John Amson
John Amson (1698 – death unknown, possibly 1765) was an English physician and amateur botanist who moved to Virginia and served as alderman and mayor of Williamsburg, during the Colonial period, from 1750 to 1751.
Biography
Amson owned lo ...
. Members of the genus are commonly known as bluestars.[Biota of North America Program 2013 county distribution maps]
/ref>[
# '' Amsonia ciliata'' Walter – fringed bluestar – SE US, S Great Plains
# '']Amsonia elliptica
''Amsonia'' is a genus of flowering plants in the dogbane family, Apocynaceae, first described as a genus in 1788. It is native primarily to North America with one species in East Asia and another in the eastern Mediterranean. It was named in ...
'' (Thunb. ex Murray) Roem. & Schult. – Japanese bluestar – China, Japan, Korea
# '' Amsonia fugatei'' S.P.McLaughlin – San Antonio bluestar – New Mexico
# '' Amsonia grandiflora'' Alexander – Arizona bluestar – Arizona, Sonora, Durango
# '' Amsonia hubrichtii'' Woodson – Hubricht's bluestar – Arkansas, Oklahoma
# '' Amsonia illustris'' Woodson – Ozark bluestar – Mississippi Valley, also Nevada
# '' Amsonia jonesii'' Woodson – Jones' bluestar – Arizona, New Mexico, Utah, Colorado
# '' Amsonia kearneyana'' Woodson – Kearney's bluestar – Baboquivari in Pima Co. in Arizona
# '' Amsonia longiflora'' Torr. – tubular bluestar – Arizona, New Mexico, Texas, Coahuila
# '' Amsonia ludoviciana'' Vail – Louisiana bluestar – Louisiana, Mississippi, Georgia
# '' Amsonia orientalis'' Decne. – European bluestar – Greece, Turkey
# '' Amsonia palmeri'' A.Gray – Palmer's bluestar – Arizona, New Mexico, Texas, Sonora, Chihuahua
# '' Amsonia peeblesii'' Woodson – Peebles' bluestar – Arizona
# ''Amsonia repens
''Amsonia'' is a genus of flowering plants in the dogbane family, Apocynaceae, first described as a genus in 1788. It is native primarily to North America with one species in East Asia and another in the eastern Mediterranean. It was named in ...
'' Shinners – creeping bluestar – E Texas, SW Louisiana
# ''Amsonia rigida
''Amsonia'' is a genus of flowering plants in the dogbane family, Apocynaceae, first described as a genus in 1788. It is native primarily to North America with one species in East Asia and another in the eastern Mediterranean. It was named in ...
'' Shuttlw. ex Small – stiff bluestar – from Georgia to Louisiana
# '' Amsonia tabernaemontana'' Walter – eastern bluestar – S + C + E United States
# '' Amsonia tharpii'' Woodson – feltleaf bluestar – W Texas, SE New Mexico
# '' Amsonia tomentosa'' Torr. & Frém. – woolly bluestar – SW US; Chihuahua
References
Apocynaceae genera
{{Apocynaceae-stub