Bulbine
Bulbine bulbosa
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Monocots
Order: Asparagales
Family: Asphodelaceae
Subfamily: Asphodeloideae
Genus: Bulbine
Wolf, 1776[1]
Synonyms[2]

Bulbine is a genus of plants in the family Asphodelaceae and subfamily Asphodeloideae,[3] named for the bulb-shaped tuber of many species.[4] It was formerly placed in the Liliaceae.[5] It is found chiefly in Southern Africa, with a few species extending into tropical Africa and a few others in Australia and Yemen.[6][2]

Bulbine is a genus of succulent plants with flowers borne in lax or compound racemes.[6] The flowers are usually yellow, with bearded stamens; some species have white, orange, or pink flowers.[6] Several species are grown in gardens, especially B. frutescens.[6] Species of Bulbine resemble Haworthia and Aloe in appearance, but with soft, fleshy leaves and tuberous roots or a caudex. They are shrubs, weedy perennials, dwarf geophytes (including Bulbine lolita, the smallest of all succulent Monocots [7]), and soft annuals. Many of the dwarf species have small, dome-shaped tubers.

Dormancy usually extends from late spring to autumn, but it varies among species and in different conditions. The leaves die and drop, the roots contract into the caudex, and the aboveground parts wither. Propagation is mostly by seed, but some species form multiple heads or offsets and can be propagated with cuttings.

Bulbine abyssinica, a common species that occurs throughout southern and east Africa.
Bulbine alooides, a species from the southern Cape, South Africa.
Bulbine latifolia
Bulbine frutescens, a species very common in cultivation

Species

Species include:[8]

References

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Bulbine.
  1. ^ "Bulbine". International Plant Name Index. Retrieved December 28, 2009.
  2. ^ a b Kew World Checklist of Selected Plant Families
  3. ^ Stevens, P.F., Angiosperm Phylogeny Website: Asparagales: Asphodeloideae
  4. ^ "Bulbine bulbosa". Growing Native Plants. Australian National Botanic Gardens. June 19, 2003. Retrieved December 28, 2009.
  5. ^ "PLANTS Profile: Bulbine Wolf". United States Department of Agriculture. Retrieved December 29, 2009.
  6. ^ a b c d "Bulbine abyssinica". PlantZAfrica.com. South African National Biodiversity Institute. Retrieved December 28, 2009.
  7. ^ Hammer, Steven (March–April 2006). "Bulbine lolita ....etc". Cactus and Succulent Society Journal. 78 (2): 70–72. doi:10.2985/0007-9367(2006)78[70:BLAPBF]2.0.CO;2. S2CID 85220695.
  8. ^ The Plant List: A Working List of All Plant Species, retrieved March 25, 2016
  9. ^ Jaarsveld, Ernst J. Van (2017). "Bulbine dewetii, a New Cliff-Dwelling Bulbine Species (Asphodelaceae) from the Western Cape". Haseltonia. 23: 53–56. doi:10.2985/026.023.0108. S2CID 89655313.
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