''Dianella revoluta'', commonly known as blueberry lily, blue flax-lily, or black-anther flax-lily, a species of flowering plant in the family

Asphodelaceae Asphodelaceae is a family of flowering plants in the order Asparagales. Such a family has been recognized by most taxonomists, but the circumscription has varied widely. In its current circumscription in the APG IV system, it includes about 40 ...

and is

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found elsew ...

to, and widespread in Australia. It is a tufted,

perennial 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 ...

herb In general use, herbs are a widely distributed and widespread group of plants, excluding vegetables and other plants consumed for macronutrients, with savory or aromatic properties that are used for flavoring and garnishing food, for medicinal ...

with grass-like leaves and up to nine blue or violet flowers with six

tepal A tepal is one of the outer parts of a flower (collectively the perianth). The term is used when these parts cannot easily be classified as either sepals or petals. This may be because the parts of the perianth are undifferentiated (i.e. of very ...

s, and

stamen The stamen (plural ''stamina'' or ''stamens'') is the pollen-producing reproductive organ of a flower. Collectively the stamens form the androecium., p. 10 Morphology and terminology A stamen typically consists of a stalk called the filame ...

s with bright yellow filaments and pale brown to almost black

anthers The stamen (plural ''stamina'' or ''stamens'') is the pollen-producing reproductive organ of a flower. Collectively the stamens form the androecium., p. 10 Morphology and terminology A stamen typically consists of a stalk called the filam ...

Description

''Dianella revoluta'' is a tufted, perennial herb with stems less than long and touching or up to apart. The leaves are folded lengthwise and grass-like, long and wide. The flowers are blue to violet and are arranged in groups of two to nine, each flower wide on a

pedicel Pedicle or pedicel may refer to: Human anatomy *Pedicle of vertebral arch, the segment between the transverse process and the vertebral body, and is often used as a radiographic marker and entry point in vertebroplasty and kyphoplasty procedures ...

long. The three

sepal A sepal () is a part of the flower of angiosperms (flowering plants). Usually green, sepals typically function as protection for the flower in bud, and often as support for the petals when in bloom., p. 106 The term ''sepalum'' was coined b ...

s are long with five to seven veins and the petals long with five veins. The stamen filaments are long and bright yellow, the anthers long and pale brown to almost black. Flowering mainly occurs from spring to early summer and the fruit is a blue to purple

berry A berry is a small, pulpy, and often edible fruit. Typically, berries are juicy, rounded, brightly colored, sweet, sour or tart, and do not have a stone or pit, although many pips or seeds may be present. Common examples are strawberries, raspb ...

, long.

Anthony Huxley Anthony Julian Huxley (2 December 1920 – 26 December 1992) was a British botanist. He edited '' Amateur Gardening'' from 1967 to 1971, and was vice-president of the Royal Horticultural Society in 1991. He was the son of Julian Huxley. He was ...

, Mark Griffiths, and Margot Levy (1992). ''The New Royal Horticultural Society Dictionary of Gardening''. The Macmillan Press, Limited: London. The Stockton Press: New York. (set).

Taxonomy

''Dianella revoluta'' was first formally described in 1810 by Robert Brown in his ''

Prodromus Florae Novae Hollandiae et Insulae Van Diemen ''Prodromus Florae Novae Hollandiae et Insulae Van Diemen'' (Prodromus of the Flora of New Holland and Van Diemen's Land) is a flora of Australia written by botanist Robert Brown and published in 1810. Often referred to as ''Prodromus Flora Novae ...

''. Five varieties of ''D. revoluta'' are accepted by the

Australian Plant Census The Australian Plant Census (APC) provides an online interface to currently accepted, published, scientific names of the vascular flora of Australia, as one of the output interfaces of the national government Integrated Biodiversity Information Syst ...

: * ''Dianella revoluta'' var. ''divaricata'' (R.Br.) R.J.F.Henderson; * ''Dianella revoluta'' var. ''minor'' R.J.F.Henderson; * ''Dianella revoluta'' R.Br. var. ''revoluta'' R.J.F.Henderson; * ''Dianella revoluta'' var. ''tenuis'' R.J.F.Henderson; * ''Dianella revoluta'' var. ''vinosa'' R.J.F.Henderson.

Distribution and habitat

Blueberry lily is common and widespread in all Australian states and the Australian Capital Territory but not the Northern Territory, growing in a wide range of habitats apart from very wet and very dry habitats.

Uses

The berry of ''D. revoluta'' is reported to be edible.Wild food plants of Australia, Tim Low

Cultural use

Dianella, Western Australia Dianella is a suburb of Perth, Western Australia. It is within the local government area of the City of Stirling. Dianella was named after the botanical title of a small blue lily, '' Dianella revoluta'', a narrow-leafed plant that was plentif ...

was named after this plant, which was plentiful in the area prior to the 1960s residential development.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q5271628 revoluta Asparagales of Australia Flora of New South Wales Flora of Western Australia Flora of South Australia Flora of Queensland Flora of the Australian Capital Territory Flora of Tasmania Flora of Victoria (state) Plants described in 1810 Taxa named by Robert Brown (botanist, born 1773)