Amaryllis

Amaryllis (/ˌæməˈrɪlɪs/[1]) is the only genus in the subtribe Amaryllidinae (tribe Amaryllideae). It is a small genus of flowering bulbs, with two species. The better known of the two, Amaryllis belladonna, is a native of the Western Cape region of South Africa, particularly the rocky southwest area between the Olifants River Valley and Knysna.[2] For many years there was confusion among botanists over the generic names Amaryllis and Hippeastrum, one result of which is that the common name "amaryllis" is mainly used for cultivars of the genus Hippeastrum, widely sold in the winter months for their ability to bloom indoors. Plants of the genus Amaryllis are known as belladonna lily, Jersey lily, naked lady, amarillo, Easter lily in Southern Australia or, in South Africa, March lily due to its propensity to flower around March. This is one of numerous genera with the common name "lily" due to their flower shape and growth habit. However, they are only distantly related to the true lily, Lilium. In the Victorian Language of Flowers (see Plant symbolism), amaryllis means "pride, determination and radiant beauty".[3][4]

Amaryllis

March lilly grave 1.JPG

Amaryllis belladonna

Scientific classificatione

Kingdom:

Plantae

Clade:

Tracheophytes

Clade:

Angiosperms

Clade:

Monocots

Order:

Asparagales

Family:

Amaryllidaceae

Subfamily:

Amaryllidoideae

Tribe:

Amaryllideae

Genus:

Amaryllis

L.

Type species

Amaryllis belladonna

L.

Taxonomy Edit

The single genus is in subtribe Amaryllidinae, in the tribe Amaryllideae. The taxonomy of the genus has been controversial. In 1753 Carl Linnaeus created the name Amaryllis belladonna, the type species of the genus Amaryllis. At the time both South African and South American plants were placed in the same genus; subsequently they were separated into two different genera. The key question is whether Linnaeus's type was a South African plant or a South American plant. If the latter, Amaryllis would be the correct name for the genus Hippeastrum, and a different name would have to be used for the genus discussed here. Alan W. Meerow et al. have briefly summarized the debate, which took place from 1938 onwards and involved botanists on both sides of the Atlantic. The outcome was a decision by the 14th International Botanical Congress in 1987 that Amaryllis L. should be a conserved name (i.e. correct regardless of priority) and ultimately based on a specimen of the South African Amaryllis belladonna from the Clifford Herbarium at the Natural History Museum in London.[6]

Species Edit

As of October 2020, Amaryllis had only two accepted species, both native to the Cape Provinces of South Africa:[7]

Amaryllis belladonna L. – south-west Cape Provinces; introduced into many parts of the world, including California, Great Britain, Australia and New Zealand[8]

Amaryllis paradisicola Snijman – west Cape Provinces

Phylogeny Edit

Amaryllidinae are placed within Amaryllideae as follow:

These are phylogenetically related as follows:

Tribe Amaryllideae 

  

Subtribe Amaryllidinae

 

  

  

Subtribe Boophoninae

 

  

  

Subtribe Strumariinae

 

  

Subtribe Crininae

 

 

 

 

Etymology Edit

The name Amaryllis is taken from a shepherdess in Virgil's pastoral Eclogues, (from the Greek ἀμαρύσσω (amarysso), meaning "to sparkle") and also from "amarella" for the bitterness of the bulb.[9][10]

Although the 1987 decision settled the question of the scientific name of the genus, the common name "amaryllis" continues to be used differently. Bulbs sold as amaryllis and described as "ready to bloom for the holidays" belong to the allied genus Hippeastrum.[11] The common name "naked lady" comes from the plant's pattern of flowering when the foliage has died down. This name is also used for other bulbs with a similar growth and flowering pattern; some of these have their own widely used and accepted common names, such as the resurrection lily (Lycoris squamigera).[12