Narcissus (genus)
Daffodil | |
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Narcissus pseudonarcissus flower | |
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Genus: | Narcissus |
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See text. |
Narcissus (Narcissi) (often called a daffodil) is the botanic name for a genus of mainly hardy, mostly spring-flowering, bulbs in the Amaryllidaceae family. They are native to Europe, North Africa, and Asia.
Description
[change | change source]It has bright perianths (petals) with a darker central trumpet (paracorolla or "corona"). The petals can be a variety of colours: bright yellow (the most common); white; pale yellow; or even peach. Usually, there is one flower on each stem, but sometimes there are more than one. The long, narrow leaves are slightly greyish in colour and rise from the base of the stem.
During the winter, the flowering part of narcissi dies away, and the plant lives on underground in a bulb. A bulb is an onion-like structure, which is filled with food. The plant lives off this food during the winter, protected from the cold by the soil above.
Other websites
[change | change source]- American Daffodil Society
- Gardening Archived 2009-01-05 at the Wayback Machine