''Crinum pedunculatum'' also known as the swamp lily, river lily or mangrove lily, is a

bulb In botany, a bulb is structurally a short stem with fleshy leaves or leaf basesBell, A.D. 1997. ''Plant form: an illustrated guide to flowering plant morphology''. Oxford University Press, Oxford, U.K. that function as food storage organs du ...

ous

perennial A perennial plant or simply perennial is a plant that lives more than two years. The term ('' per-'' + '' -ennial'', "through the years") is often used to differentiate a plant from shorter-lived annuals and biennials. The term is also wide ...

found in stream and tidal areas of the Northern Territory, Queensland and New South Wales, Australia as well as

New Guinea New Guinea (; Hiri Motu: ''Niu Gini''; id, Papua, or , historically ) is the world's second-largest island with an area of . Located in Oceania in the southwestern Pacific Ocean, the island is separated from Australia by the wide Torr ...

and some

Pacific Islands Collectively called the Pacific Islands, the islands in the Pacific Ocean are further categorized into three major island groups: Melanesia, Micronesia, and Polynesia. Depending on the context, the term ''Pacific Islands'' may refer to one of ...

. It is unclear whether it is native or introduced to Norfolk Island. ''C. pedunculatum'' is considered by some sources to be a

synonym A synonym is a word, morpheme, or phrase that means exactly or nearly the same as another word, morpheme, or phrase in a given language. For example, in the English language, the words ''begin'', ''start'', ''commence'', and ''initiate'' are al ...

of '' Crinum asiaticum'' var. ''pedunculatum''., search for "Crinum pedunculatum" The differences between ''C. asiaticum'' and ''C. pedunculatum'' are subtle. The latter tends to be somewhat smaller, but has broader petals, giving it a less fragile appearance. It is a very large bulbous perennial plant, up to 2 to 3 metres tall, with a spread of up to 3 metres. It likes either full sun or partial shade. It is usually found on the edge of forests, but also at the high tide level close to

mangrove A mangrove is a shrub or tree that grows in coastal saline or brackish water. The term is also used for tropical coastal vegetation consisting of such species. Mangroves are taxonomically diverse, as a result of convergent evolution in several ...

s. The white, fragrant flowers are in a cluster with 10 to 100 flowers on an

umbel In botany, an umbel is an inflorescence that consists of a number of short flower stalks (called pedicels) that spread from a common point, somewhat like umbrella ribs. The word was coined in botanical usage in the 1590s, from Latin ''umbella'' " ...

Cultivation and uses

''C. pedunculatum'' makes a beautiful feature plant in a large garden. It prefers a fairly well shaded position. It is a good container plant if kept well-watered. The sap has been used as a treatment for

box jellyfish Box jellyfish (class Cubozoa) are cnidaria Cnidaria () is a phylum under kingdom Animalia containing over 11,000 species of aquatic animals found both in Fresh water, freshwater and Marine habitats, marine environments, predominantly the latt ...

stings.

Propagation

The flowers produce a small bulb, or the larger bulbs in the ground may be transplanted.

Gallery

File:Crinum pedunculatum (Raper).jpg, Watercolour by George Raper depicting flower, seed and entire plant File:Crinum pedunculatum plant (BBG).jpg , In cultivation at Birmingham Botanical Gardens (United Kingdom) File:Crinum pedunculatum inflorescence.jpg , Inflorescence, in cultivation at Birmingham Botanical Gardens (United Kingdom) File:Fraser Island wildflower.jpg , Inflorescence,

Fraser Island Fraser Island ( Butchulla: ) is a World Heritage-listed island along the south-eastern coast in the Wide Bay–Burnett region, Queensland, Australia. The island is approximately north of the state capital, Brisbane, and is within the Fra ...

, Australia File:Swamp Lily flower.jpg , Inflorescence,

Cooktown Cooktown is a coastal town and locality in the Shire of Cook, Queensland, Australia. Cooktown is at the mouth of the Endeavour River, on Cape York Peninsula in Far North Queensland where James Cook beached his ship, the Endeavour, for repai ...

, Australia

References

* Beasley, John. 2006. ''Plants of Tropical North Queensland: the Compact Guide''. Footloose Publications, Kuranda. . * Fay, Michael F. and Mark W. Chase. "Resurrection of Themidaceae for the Brodiaea alliance, and Recircumscription of Alliaceae, Amaryllidaceae and Agapanthoideae." ''Taxon'', Vol. 45, No. 3. (Aug., 1996), pp. 441–451. * Scarth-Johnson, Vera. 2000. ''National Treasures: Flowering Plants of Cooktown and Northern Australia''. Vera Scarth-Johnson Gallery Association. (pbk.) Limited Edition - Leather Bound.

External links

* *
Association of Societies for Growing Australian Plants:''Crinum pedunculatum''
{{Taxonbar, from=Q5185772 pedunculatum Flora of New South Wales Flora of Queensland Flora of New Guinea Asparagales of Australia Taxa named by Robert Brown (botanist, born 1773)

Cultivation and uses

Propagation

Gallery

See also

References

External links