''Asphodelus albus'', common name white asphodel, is a

herbaceous Herbaceous plants are vascular plants that have no persistent woody stems above ground. This broad category of plants includes many perennials, and nearly all annuals and biennials. Definitions of "herb" and "herbaceous" The fourth edition of t ...

perennial plant A perennial plant or simply perennial is a plant that lives more than two years. The term ('' per-'' + '' -ennial'', "through the years") is often used to differentiate a plant from shorter-lived annuals and biennials. The term is also wide ...

belonging to the genus ''

Asphodelus ''Asphodelus'' is a genus of mainly perennial flowering plants in the asphodel family Asphodelaceae that was first described by Carl Linnaeus in 1753. The genus was formerly included in the lily family (Liliaceae). The genus is native to tempera ...

''.

Description

White asphodel grows to a height of . The plain stem is supported by fleshy, thickened roots (

rhizome In botany and dendrology, a rhizome (; , ) is a modified subterranean plant stem that sends out roots and shoots from its nodes. Rhizomes are also called creeping rootstalks or just rootstalks. Rhizomes develop from axillary buds and grow hori ...

s). The leaves, which originate from the base of the stem, are gutter-shaped and

glaucous ''Glaucous'' (, ) is used to describe the pale grey or bluish-green appearance of the surfaces of some plants, as well as in the names of birds, such as the glaucous gull (''Larus hyperboreus''), glaucous-winged gull (''Larus glaucescens''), g ...

(covered by a waxy coating), about wide and long. The white hermaphroditic flowers are funnel-shaped, of diameter, with six elongated petals. The flowering period extends from April through June. The egg-shaped yellow-green seed capsules are usually in length.

Subspecies

* ''Asphodelus albus'' subsp. ''carpetanus'' Z. Díaz & Valdés * ''Asphodelus albus'' subsp. ''delphinensis'' (Gren. & Godr.) Z. Díaz & Valdés * ''Asphodelus albus'' subsp. ''occidentalis'' (Jord.) Z.Díaz & Valdés * ''Asphodelus albus'' subsp. ''villarsii'' (Verl. ex Billot) I. Richardson & Smythies

Distribution and habitat

This plant is native to the

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 and Southern Europe and Anatolia, on the south by North Africa, and on the e ...

area. It is commonly found in

meadows A meadow ( ) is an open habitat, or field, vegetated by grasses, herbs, and other non-woody plants. Trees or shrubs may sparsely populate meadows, as long as these areas maintain an open character. Meadows may be naturally occurring or artifici ...

and

heathland A heath () is a shrubland habitat found mainly on free-draining infertile, acidic soils and characterised by open, low-growing woody vegetation. Moorland is generally related to high-ground heaths with—especially in Great Britain—a cooler ...

of central

Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond") , national_anthem = (English: "Royal March") , i ...

, southwest

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

, and along the southern

Alps The Alps () ; german: Alpen ; it, Alpi ; rm, Alps ; sl, Alpe . are the highest and most extensive mountain range system that lies entirely in Europe, stretching approximately across seven Alpine countries (from west to east): France, Sw ...

to the western

Balkans The Balkans ( ), also known as the Balkan Peninsula, is a geographical area in southeastern Europe with various geographical and historical definitions. The region takes its name from the Balkan Mountains that stretch throughout the who ...

up to an altitude of . It is also found on the continent Africa, mainly in Libyan territory. Soils with a high

lime Lime commonly refers to: * Lime (fruit), a green citrus fruit * Lime (material), inorganic materials containing calcium, usually calcium oxide or calcium hydroxide * Lime (color), a color between yellow and green Lime may also refer to: Botany ...

content are preferred.

In culture

White asphodel is a feature of the

Asphodel Meadows The Asphodel Meadows is a section of the ancient Greek underworld where ordinary souls are sent to live after death. Later depictions The Asphodel Meadows is most probably where the souls of people who lived mediocre lives remain. Its relationshi ...

. In

Ancient Greece Ancient Greece ( el, Ἑλλάς, Hellás) was a northeastern Mediterranean civilization, existing from the Greek Dark Ages of the 12th–9th centuries BC to the end of classical antiquity ( AD 600), that comprised a loose collection of cult ...

, white asphodel was associated with mourning and death. Its presence was held to facilitate the transition of the dead to

Elysium Elysium (, ), otherwise known as the Elysian Fields ( grc, Ἠλύσιον πεδίον, ''Ēlýsion pedíon'') or Elysian Plains, is a conception of the afterlife that developed over time and was maintained by some Greek religious and philos ...

. White asphodel is also known by the name of branched lily or king's spear. White asphodel roots were used as food staple in ancient Greece: According to

Pliny the Elder Gaius Plinius Secundus (AD 23/2479), called Pliny the Elder (), was a Roman author, naturalist and natural philosopher, and naval and army commander of the early Roman Empire, and a friend of the emperor Vespasian. He wrote the encyclopedic '' ...

, one plant could produce up to 80 tubers. Charles de L´ecluse wrote that he saw 200 tubers attached to one plant.

Theophrastus Theophrastus (; grc-gre, Θεόφραστος ; c. 371c. 287 BC), a Greek philosopher and the successor to Aristotle in the Peripatetic school. He was a native of Eresos in Lesbos.Gavin Hardy and Laurence Totelin, ''Ancient Botany'', Routledge ...

mentioned that the roasted stalk and seeds could be used as food as well. Asphodel is supposed to have extended

Epimenides Epimenides of Cnossos (or Epimenides of Crete) (; grc-gre, Ἐπιμενίδης) was a semi-mythical 7th or 6th century BC Greek seer and philosopher-poet, from Knossos or Phaistos. Life While tending his father's sheep, Epimenides is said to ...

life. The custom of planting graves in Greece with asphodel described in 1887

Macmillan's Magazine ''Macmillan's Magazine'' was a monthly British magazine from 1859 to 1907 published by Alexander Macmillan (publisher), Alexander Macmillan. The magazine was a literary magazine, literary periodical that published fiction and non-fiction works fr ...

may have been to provide nourishment to the dead. It was introduced as an ornamental in England in 1551, and as of 1887 "extensively used in Algeria for the manufacture of alcohol". Asphodelus albus from Mavrovo National Park.jpg, In

Mavrovo National Park The Mavrovo National Park ( mk, Национален парк Маврово) is the largest of the four national parks of North Macedonia. Located in the west of the country, it spreads over an area of about and is characterized by deep canyons ...

North Macedonia North Macedonia, ; sq, Maqedonia e Veriut, (Macedonia before February 2019), officially the Republic of North Macedonia,, is a country in Southeast Europe. It gained independence in 1991 as one of the successor states of Socialist Feder ...

Abrótega.jpg, In the mountain range of Montemuro, northern Portugal Asphodèle blanc MHNT.BOT.2004.0.398.jpg, Capsules and seeds

References

* Pignatti S. - Flora d'Italia - Edagricole – 1982 Vol. III, pag. 346
Asphodelus albus Plants profile
usda.gov
Asphodelus albus
zipcodezoo.com, 7/15/2012
Asphodelus albus
Encyclopædia Britannica

External links

Biolib
n.d. (Czech and English)

n.d., luirig.altervista.org (in Italian) {{Taxonbar, from=Q1098135 Asphodeloideae Flora of Europe Flora of Italy Plants described in 1799 Taxa named by Philip Miller