Haemanthus amarylloides
Encyclopedia
Haemanthus
amarylloides Jacq.
is an endemic South African bulbous plant first described in 1804 by Nikolaus Joseph von Jacquin
from specimens sent to the Schönbrunn Palace
gardens by the collectors Boos and Scholl. Franz Boos was an Austrian botanist who, with Franz Bredemeyer, made up Emperor Joseph II's gardening team. Boos and his assistant Georg Scholl, were collecting Cape plants for the imperial gardens. These collections were transported to Vienna
by Nicolas Thomas Baudin
, who had been carefully briefed by Boos on the techniques used for keeping plants and animals alive on long ship voyages.
It belongs to the Amaryllidaceae
family (subfamily Amaryllidoideae) and its specific name shows that Jacquin felt it resembled an Amaryllis
. H. amarylloides is usually found in seasonally-inundated hollows at about 600 m altitude, between Springbok
and Grootvlei in Namaqualand
, and along the Bokkeveld Mountains escarpment to Gifberg near Vanrhynsdorp. It has a cone-shaped inflorescence of pale to dark pink flowers appearing from May to October. The two annual leaves are strap-shaped to broadly elliptical, carried erect or flat on the ground. Slight differences between the Gifberg and Vanrhyns Pass populations, support the notion of two subspecies for now, but finding intermediate forms may revert the taxon to a single, variable species.
The name "Haemanthus amarylloides" was repeatedly applied in error to specimens of a similar-looking species from the summer rainfall region. These specimens were subsequently separated and a new name of Haemanthus montanus was created for them.
Haemanthus
Haemanthus is a Southern African genus of Amaryllidaceae, subfamily Amaryllidoideae, with some 22 known species, endemic to South Africa, Namibia and the kingdoms of Lesotho and Swaziland...
amarylloides Jacq.
Nikolaus Joseph von Jacquin
Nikolaus Joseph Freiherr von Jacquin or Baron Nikolaus von Jacquin. was a scientist who studied medicine, chemistry and botany....
is an endemic South African bulbous plant first described in 1804 by Nikolaus Joseph von Jacquin
Nikolaus Joseph von Jacquin
Nikolaus Joseph Freiherr von Jacquin or Baron Nikolaus von Jacquin. was a scientist who studied medicine, chemistry and botany....
from specimens sent to the Schönbrunn Palace
Schönbrunn Palace
Schönbrunn Palace is a former imperial 1,441-room Rococo summer residence in Vienna, Austria. One of the most important cultural monuments in the country, since the 1960s it has been one of the major tourist attractions in Vienna...
gardens by the collectors Boos and Scholl. Franz Boos was an Austrian botanist who, with Franz Bredemeyer, made up Emperor Joseph II's gardening team. Boos and his assistant Georg Scholl, were collecting Cape plants for the imperial gardens. These collections were transported to Vienna
Vienna
Vienna is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Austria and one of the nine states of Austria. Vienna is Austria's primary city, with a population of about 1.723 million , and is by far the largest city in Austria, as well as its cultural, economic, and political centre...
by Nicolas Thomas Baudin
Nicolas Baudin
Nicolas-Thomas Baudin was a French explorer, cartographer, naturalist and hydrographer.Baudin was born a commoner in Saint-Martin-de-Ré on the Île de Ré. At the age of fifteen he joined the merchant navy, and at twenty joined the French East India Company...
, who had been carefully briefed by Boos on the techniques used for keeping plants and animals alive on long ship voyages.
It belongs to the Amaryllidaceae
Amaryllidaceae
Amaryllidoideae is the subfamily of flowering plants that takes its name from the genus Amaryllis. It is part of the family Amaryllidaceae, in order Asparagales...
family (subfamily Amaryllidoideae) and its specific name shows that Jacquin felt it resembled an Amaryllis
Amaryllis
Amaryllis is a small genus of flowering bulbs, with two species. The better known of the two, Amaryllis belladonna, is a native of South Africa, particularly the rocky southwest region near the Cape...
. H. amarylloides is usually found in seasonally-inundated hollows at about 600 m altitude, between Springbok
Springbok, Northern Cape
Springbok is the largest town in the Namaqualand area in the Northern Cape province of South Africa. it had a population of 10,294. Springbok is located on the N7 national road which connects the Cape with Namibia, and at the western end of the N14, which connects it with Upington and Pretoria...
and Grootvlei in Namaqualand
Namaqualand
Namaqualand is an arid region of Namibia and South Africa, extending along the west coast over and covering a total area of 170,000 square miles/440,000 km². It is divided by the lower course of the Orange River into two portions - Little Namaqualand to the south and Great Namaqualand to the...
, and along the Bokkeveld Mountains escarpment to Gifberg near Vanrhynsdorp. It has a cone-shaped inflorescence of pale to dark pink flowers appearing from May to October. The two annual leaves are strap-shaped to broadly elliptical, carried erect or flat on the ground. Slight differences between the Gifberg and Vanrhyns Pass populations, support the notion of two subspecies for now, but finding intermediate forms may revert the taxon to a single, variable species.
The name "Haemanthus amarylloides" was repeatedly applied in error to specimens of a similar-looking species from the summer rainfall region. These specimens were subsequently separated and a new name of Haemanthus montanus was created for them.