''Sternbergia'' is a genus of
Eurasian and
North African plants in the
Amaryllis family
The Amaryllidaceae are a family of herbaceous, mainly perennial and bulbous (rarely rhizomatous) flowering plants in the monocot order Asparagales. The family takes its name from the genus ''Amaryllis'' and is commonly known as the amaryllis fami ...
, subfamily
Amaryllidoideae
Amaryllidoideae (Amaryllidaceae ''s.s.'', amaryllids) is a subfamily of monocot flowering plants in the family Amaryllidaceae, order Asparagales. The most recent APG classification, APG III, takes a broad view of the Amaryllidaceae, which then ...
.
[Waldstein, Franz de Paula Adam von & Kitaibel, Pál. 1804. Descriptiones et Icones Plantarum Rariorum Hungariae 2: 172]
The genus comprises eight recognised species that show a broad distribution throughout the
Mediterranean Basin
In biogeography, the Mediterranean Basin (; also known as the Mediterranean Region or sometimes Mediterranea) is the region of lands around the Mediterranean Sea that have mostly a Mediterranean climate, with mild to cool, rainy winters and w ...
as well as central and southwestern
Asia.
''Sternbergia'' contains a number of species of flowering
bulbs
In botany, a bulb is structurally a short stem with fleshy leaves or leaf basesBell, A.D. 1997. ''Plant form: an illustrated guide to flowering plant morphology''. Oxford University Press, Oxford, U.K. that function as food storage organs durin ...
which rather resemble ''
Crocus''.
These plants produce golden-yellow goblet-shaped flowers borne on stalks some way above the ground that open during the autumn or early winter.
The flower is composed of six
stamens and a single
style attached to an
inferior ovary.
Long, strap-like leaves may appear with the flowers or sometime after. The only two exceptions to this are ''
S. vernalis'' and ''
S. candida'' which flower in the spring, with ''S. candida'' producing striking white flowers.
The genus has gained notability due to the widespread use of one of its species, ''S. lutea'', as a garden plant. This species has been found in cultivation for several hundred years, and has become naturalised in many parts of northern Europe, well beyond its natural range.
''
Sternbergia lutea
''Sternbergia lutea'', the winter daffodil, autumn daffodil, fall daffodil, lily-of-the-field, or yellow autumn crocus, is a bulbous flowering plant in the family Amaryllidaceae, subfamily Amaryllidoideae, in the Narcisseae tribe, which is use ...
'' was first described in 1601 by
Clusius, who included the plants in the genus ''
Narcissus
Narcissus may refer to:
Biology
* ''Narcissus'' (plant), a genus containing daffodils and others
People
* Narcissus (mythology), Greek mythological character
* Narcissus (wrestler) (2nd century), assassin of the Roman emperor Commodus
* Tiberiu ...
''.
Carl Linnaeus in 1753 regarded them as part of ''
Amaryllis''.
It was not until 1825 that the species was transferred to ''Sternbergia,''
Ker Gawler, John Bellenden ex Sprengel, Curt Polycarp Joachim. 1825. Systema Vegetabilium, editio decima sexta 2: 57
in Latin using the generic name coined in 1804.[
The genus was named in honor of Count Kaspar von Sternberg.
]
Species
, the World Checklist of Selected Plant Families recognizes eight species:[, search for "Sternbergia"]
*''Sternbergia candida
''Sternbergia candida'' is a bulbous flowering plant in the family Amaryllidaceae, subfamily Amaryllidoideae,Stevens, P.F. (2001 onwards"Asparagales: Amaryllidoideae" ''Angiosperm Phylogeny Website'', retrieved 2014-12-27 which is used as an orn ...
'' B.Mathew & T.Baytop - Turkey
*''Sternbergia clusiana
''Sternbergia clusiana'' is a bulbous flowering plant in the family Amaryllidaceae, subfamily Amaryllidoideae,Stevens, P.F. (2001 onwards"Asparagales: Amaryllidoideae" ''Angiosperm Phylogeny Website'', retrieved 2014-12-27 which is sometimes used ...
'' (Ker Gawl.) Ker Gawl. ex Spreng., including ''S. grandiflora'' Boiss. ex Baker, ''S. latifolia'' Boiss. & Hausskn. ex Baker, ''S. macrantha'' (J.Gay) J.Gay ex Baker, ''S. sparffiordiana'' Dinsm., ''S. stipitata'' Boiss. & Hausskn. - Aegean Islands, Middle East
*''Sternbergia colchiciflora
''Sternbergia colchiciflora'' is a bulbous flowering plant in the family Amaryllidaceae, subfamily Amaryllidoideae,Stevens, P.F. (2001 onwards"Asparagales: Amaryllidoideae" ''Angiosperm Phylogeny Website'', retrieved 2014-12-27 which is sometimes ...
'' Waldst. & Kit., including ''S. alexandrae'' Sosn., ''S. citrina'' (Herb.) Ker Gawl. ex Schult. & Schult.f., ''S. etnensis'' (Raf.) Guss., ''S. exscapa'' Tineo in G.Gussone - southern + southeastern Europe from Spain to Ukraine; Morocco, Algeria, Caucasus, Middle East
*''Sternbergia lutea
''Sternbergia lutea'', the winter daffodil, autumn daffodil, fall daffodil, lily-of-the-field, or yellow autumn crocus, is a bulbous flowering plant in the family Amaryllidaceae, subfamily Amaryllidoideae, in the Narcisseae tribe, which is use ...
'' (L.) Ker Gawl. ex Spreng., including ''S. aurantiaca'' Dinsm., ''S. sicula'' Tineo ex Guss, ''S. greuteriana'' Kamari & R.Artelari - southern Europe from Spain to Balkans; Middle East, Caucasus, Turkmenistan, Tajikistan; naturalized in North Africa
*'' Sternbergia minoica'' Ravenna Autumn daffodil - Crete
*'' Sternbergia pulchella'' Boiss. & Blanche in P.E.Boissier - Syria
Syria ( ar, سُورِيَا or سُورِيَة, translit=Sūriyā), officially the Syrian Arab Republic ( ar, الجمهورية العربية السورية, al-Jumhūrīyah al-ʻArabīyah as-Sūrīyah), is a Western Asian country loc ...
, Lebanon
*'' Sternbergia schubertii'' Schenk - İzmir Province in western Turkey
*''Sternbergia vernalis
''Sternbergia vernalis'' is a bulbous flowering plant in the family Amaryllidaceae, subfamily Amaryllidoideae,Stevens, P.F. (2001 onwards"Asparagales: Amaryllidoideae" ''Angiosperm Phylogeny Website'', retrieved 2014-12-27 which is sometimes used ...
'' (Mill.) Gorer & J.H.Harvey, including ''S. fischeriana'' (Herb.) Roem. - Middle East, Caucasus, Central Asia
;formerly included[
Three names have been coined using the name ''Sternbergia'' but referring to species now considered better suited to other genera ''( Colchicum, ]Narcissus
Narcissus may refer to:
Biology
* ''Narcissus'' (plant), a genus containing daffodils and others
People
* Narcissus (mythology), Greek mythological character
* Narcissus (wrestler) (2nd century), assassin of the Roman emperor Commodus
* Tiberiu ...
and Zephyranthes).'' We provide links to help you find appropriate information.
* ''Sternbergia americana - Zephyranthes americana''
* ''Sternbergia caucasica - Colchicum trigynum
''Colchicum trigynum'' is a species of plant native to Turkey, Iran and the Caucasus, often grown as an ornamental plant outside its native range.
References
External links
*Peter C. Nijssen, Colchicum trigynum
trigynum
Plants describ ...
''
* ''Sternbergia exigua - Narcissus cavanillesii
''Narcissus cavanillesii'' is a species of ''Narcissus'' (daffodils) in the family Amaryllidaceae native to the Iberian Peninsula and Northwest Africa. It is classified in Section ''Tapeinanthus'', of which it is the sole member. Formerly, it was ...
''
References
External links
Pacific Bulb Society: Sternbergia
{{Taxonbar, from=Q337545
Amaryllidaceae genera
Amaryllidoideae