''Galanthus plicatus'', the pleated snowdrop,
[ is a ]species
In biology, a species is the basic unit of classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate s ...
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 ...
in the family Amaryllidaceae, native to eastern Europe and western Asia.[ It is a spring flowering bulbous herbaceous ]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 wid ...
.
Description
''Galanthus plicatus'' grows to about tall. Its leaves are bluish or greyish green, broader than many other species of ''Galanthus'', up to wide. The leaf edges are folded back away from the upper surface of the leaf, both in bud and after they expand. The nodding white flowers appear in very early spring, and are among the very first plants to flower. They have six white 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. The outer three are all white, long; the inner three are shorter and notched, with a green mark above the notch, often extending to beyond the middle of the tepal.[ In ''G. plicatus'' subsp. ''byzantinus'', the inner tepals also have a green mark at the base.][
]
Taxonomy
''Galanthus plicatus'' was first described by the German biologist Friedrich Marschall von Bieberstein in 1819.[ In 1893, Baker described ''Galanthus byzantinus'' from north-western Turkey as a separate species, differing in possessing green marks at the base as well as the tip of the inner three tepals. It is now usually treated as a subspecies of ''G. plicatus''.][
]
Subspecies
Two subspecies are recognized:
*''Galanthus plicatus'' subsp. ''byzantinus'' (Baker) D.A.Webb – north-west Turkey[
*''Galanthus plicatus'' subsp. ''plicatus'' – throughout the range of the species][
]
Distribution and habitat
''Galanthus plicatus'' occurs from eastern Europe (Romania
Romania ( ; ro, România ) is a country located at the crossroads of Central, Eastern, and Southeastern Europe. It borders Bulgaria to the south, Ukraine to the north, Hungary to the west, Serbia to the southwest, Moldova to the east, and ...
, Ukraine
Ukraine ( uk, Україна, Ukraïna, ) is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the second-largest European country after Russia, which it borders to the east and northeast. Ukraine covers approximately . Prior to the ongoing Russian inv ...
and Crimea
Crimea, crh, Къырым, Qırım, grc, Κιμμερία / Ταυρική, translit=Kimmería / Taurikḗ ( ) is a peninsula in Ukraine, on the northern coast of the Black Sea, that has been occupied by Russia since 2014. It has a pop ...
) through Turkey
Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with a small portion on the Balkan Peninsula in ...
to the north-west Caucasus
The Caucasus () or Caucasia (), is a region between the Black Sea and the Caspian Sea, mainly comprising Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia (country), Georgia, and parts of Southern Russia. The Caucasus Mountains, including the Greater Caucasus range ...
.[ ''G. plicatus'' subsp. ''plicatus'' is found throughout the range of the species,][ ''G. plicatus'' subsp. ''byzantinus'' only in north-west Turkey.][ The species is found in woodland and scrub, usually in shade.][
]
Cultivation
''Galanthus plicatus''cultivar
A cultivar is a type of cultivated plant that people have selected for desired traits and when propagated retain those traits. Methods used to propagate cultivars include: division, root and stem cuttings, offsets, grafting, tissue culture ...
'Three Ships' are both recipients of the Royal Horticultural Society
The Royal Horticultural Society (RHS), founded in 1804 as the Horticultural Society of London, is the UK's leading gardening charity.
The RHS promotes horticulture through its five gardens at Wisley (Surrey), Hyde Hall (Essex), Harlow Carr (Nor ...
's Award of Garden Merit. The cultivar 'Wendy's Gold' has a yellow ovary and yellow markings on the inner tepals.
References
{{Taxonbar, from=Q849244
Amaryllidoideae
Flora of Romania
Flora of the Crimean Peninsula
Flora of Ukraine
Flora of the Caucasus
Flora of Turkey
Plants described in 1819