Muscari azureum
| Muscari azureum | |
|---|---|
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| Clade: | Tracheophytes |
| Clade: | Angiosperms |
| Clade: | Monocots |
| Order: | Asparagales |
| Family: | Asparagaceae |
| Subfamily: | Scilloideae |
| Genus: | Muscari |
| Subgenus: | Muscari subg. Pseudomuscari |
| Species: | M. azureum
|
| Binomial name | |
| Muscari azureum Fenzl[1]
| |
| Synonyms[1] | |
| |
Muscari azureum (syn. Pseudomuscari azureum), the azure grape hyacinth, is a species of flowering plant in the family Asparagaceae, native to Turkey. A bulbous perennial, it is grown in gardens for its spring flowers. The Latin specific epithet azureum means "bright blue",[2] a reference to its flower colour.
Description
Muscari azureum is a small plant, around 4–15 cm (1.6–5.9 in) high with two to three grey-green leaves per bulb. Up to 60 flowers are borne in Spring (March or April in the Northern Hemisphere) in a dense "spike" (raceme). Each flower is 4–5 mm (0.16–0.20 in) long and bright blue in colour with a darker stripe along each of the lobes. A feature which distinguishes species placed in subgenus Pseudomuscari, like M. azureum,[3] from other groups of Muscari is that the mouth of the flower is not narrowed but forms an open bell-shape. It grows in alpine meadows in north and east Turkey.[4][5]
Cultivation
M. azureum may be found in horticultural sources under the illegitimate name Hyacinthus azureus. The species is popular as a spring-flowering bulb; Brian Mathew describes it as "a delightful plant" for use in rock gardens or underneath shrubs.[4] It is frost-hardy and should be grown in full sun.[5] It has gained the Royal Horticultural Society's Award of Garden Merit.[6][7] There is a white cultivar, 'Album'.[4]
References
- ^ a b "Muscari azureum Fenzl". Plants of the World Online. Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Retrieved 2025-09-08.
- ^ Harrison, Lorraine (2012), RHS Latin for gardeners, United Kingdom: Mitchell Beazley, p. 224, ISBN 978-1-84533-731-5
- ^ Böhnert, Tim; Neumann, Michael; Quandt, Dietmar & Weigend, Maximilian (2023). "Phylogeny based generic reclassification of Muscari sensu lato (Asparagaceae) using plastid and genomic DNA". Taxon. 72 (2): 261–277. doi:10.1002/tax.12864.
- ^ a b c Mathew, Brian (1987), The Smaller Bulbs, London: B.T. Batsford, ISBN 978-0-7134-4922-8, p. 127 (as Muscari azureum)
- ^ a b Schauenberg, Paul (1965), The Bulb Book, London: Frederick Warne, OCLC 13373794, p. 179 (as Hyacinthella azurea)
- ^ "Muscari azureum", RHS Plant Selector, retrieved 3 January 2021
- ^ "AGM Plants - Ornamental" (PDF). Royal Horticultural Society. July 2017. p. 65. Retrieved 9 April 2018.