Erysimum cheiri

Erysimum cheiri
Erysimum cheiri
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Plantae
(unranked): Angiosperms
(unranked): Eudicots
(unranked): Rosids
Order: Brassicales
Family: Brassicaceae
Genus: Erysimum
Species: E. cheiri
Binomial name
Erysimum cheiri
(L.) Crantz
Synonyms

Cheiranthus cheiri

Erysimum cheiri (syn. Cheiranthus cheiri) is a species of wallflower known by the common name Aegean wallflower in English.[citation needed] It is also known as giroflée and revenelle in French, goldlack in German, alhelí in Spanish and violacciocca in Italian.[1]

Contents

Distribution

Erysimum cheiri in Paris, France

The plant is native to Europe but it is common and widespread on other continents where it is an introduced species.

Description

This is a biennial or perennial herb with one or more highly branching stems reaching heights of 15 to 80 centimeters. The leaves are generally narrow and pointed and may be up to 20 centimeters long. The top of the stem is occupied by a club-shaped inflorescence of flowers. Each flower has purplish-green sepals and rounded petals which are two to three centimeters long and in shades of bright yellows to reds and purples. The flowers fall away to leave long fruits which are narrow, hairy siliques several centimeters in length.

Cultivation

This is a popular ornamental plant. A miniature yellow double leafed wallflower Erysimum cheiri was rediscovered by Rev. Henry Harpur-Crewe (before 1883) and is now named "Harpur Crewe".[2] Other bred varieties may vary quite a bit in appearance from the wild plant. One cultivar, 'Chelsea Jacket', is a winner of the Royal Horticultural Society's Award of Garden Merit. Other varieties such as Blood Red Covent Garden are easy to grow and often benefit from being sown and left to their own devices, growing on patches of empty land with little effort required to maintain them, providing aesthetically sound blooms which produce heady scents.

References

  1. ^ GRIN Species Profile
  2. ^ Cornett, Peggy (January). "In the Company of Gardeners: The Flower Diaries of Jefferson, Skipwith, and Faris". Twinleaf Journal. http://www.monticello.org/site/house-and-gardens/company-gardeners-flower-diaries-jefferson-skipwith-and-faris. Retrieved 2 December 2010. 

External links


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