MUSCARI WEISSII

Family and Genus:- See- HYACINTHACEAE/ Subgen. LEOPOLDIA

Common Names:-

Homotypic Synonyms:- Leopoldia theraea.

Meaning:- Muscari (L) Musk-like (from the Turkish, moscos, fragrance).

Weissii (L) For Emanuel Weiss (1837-1870), a Bohemian-born

Austrian naval physician and botanist.

General description:- Short to medium, rather slender, bulbous perennial.

Bulb:-

1) Bulb-tunics, dark brown to reddish.

Scape:-

1) (6-)8-30(-45) cm, longer or shorter than the leaves.

Leaves:-

1) (2-)3-4(-6), 8-30 cm x 8-15 mm. linear-lanceolate, canaliculate.

Flower:-

1) Raceme, lax, cylindrical.

2) Pedicels, of the fertile flowers 1·5-9 mm, usually shorter than the flowers, patent

at anthesis.

3) Fertile flowers, 5-9(-11) mm, oblong or obconic-tubular, occasionally slightly

constricted in the middle, shoulders rounded, distal part of the tube dark brown.

proximal, brownish-yellow or greenish, teeth, bright brownish-yellow.

4) Pedicels of the sterile flowers, 5-9 mm, patent, usually as long as those of the

fertile flowers.

5) Sterile flowers, 4-8 mm, obovoid, violet or purplish, shorter or longer than the

fertile.

Fruit:-

1) Capsule, 10-15 x 9·5-10·5 mm, broadly ellipsoid or obovoid.

Click here for a glossary of terms used.

Habitat:- Usually in dry open shrubby vegetation on rocky slopes of limestone or

volcanic substrate, sometimes in disturbed habitats such as roadsides and field

margins 0-900 m.

Distribution:- Almost restricted to the Aegean area (a few records also from Pe,

Greek mainland and W Anatolia). Rare on Crete currently known from only a few

locations. The records from Crete may refer to the similar M. spreitzenhoferi.

Flowering time:- Mar-May

Photos by:- A. N. Other