''Sternbergia lutea'', the winter daffodil, autumn daffodil, fall daffodil, lily-of-the-field, or yellow autumn crocus, 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 duri ...

ous flowering plant in the family

Amaryllidaceae The Amaryllidaceae are a family of herbaceous, mainly perennial and bulbous (rarely rhizomatous) flowering plants in the monocot order Asparagales. The family takes its name from the genus ''Amaryllis'' and is commonly known as the amaryllis fa ...

, subfamily

Amaryllidoideae Amaryllidoideae (Amaryllidaceae ''s.s.'', amaryllids) is a subfamily of monocot flowering plants in the family Amaryllidaceae, order Asparagales. The most recent APG classification, APG III, takes a broad view of the Amaryllidaceae, which then ...

, in the Narcisseae tribe, which is used as an ornamental plant. It has yellow flowers which appear in autumn. The Latin

specific epithet In taxonomy, binomial nomenclature ("two-term naming system"), also called nomenclature ("two-name naming system") or binary nomenclature, is a formal system of naming species of living things by giving each a name composed of two parts, bot ...

''lutea'' means "yellow".

Description

''Sternbergia lutea'' has a wide distribution from the

Balearic Islands The Balearic Islands ( es, Islas Baleares ; or ca, Illes Balears ) are an archipelago in the Balearic Sea, near the eastern coast of the Iberian Peninsula. The archipelago is an autonomous community and a province of Spain; its capital is ...

in the Western Mediterranean through to Tajikistan in Central Asia., search for "Sternbergia lutea" It dies down to a bulb during the summer. Leaves first appear in the autumn (September to November in its native habitats), and are glossy green, up to 12 mm wide; they remain through the winter. Deep yellow flowers appear soon after the leaves, with six tepals around 3–3.5 cm long,, p. 157–159 six yellow stamens and a style with a single stigma. Smaller forms with narrower leaves (up to 5 mm wide) and narrower tepals (3–12 mm rather than 10–20 mm) have been separated off under various names (e.g. ''S. lutea'' var. ''graeca'', ''S. sicula''). All are treated as ''S. lutea'' in the Kew World Checklist.

Cultivation

''Sternbergia lutea'' is hardy to

USDA hardiness zones A hardiness zone is a geographic area defined as having a certain average annual minimum temperature, a factor relevant to the survival of many plants. In some systems other statistics are included in the calculations. The original and most wide ...

7–9 (−18 to −1 °C) depending on the degree of protection given. It can be grown outside in the British Isles in well-drained soil; a warm dry period in summer is required for good flowering. Alkaline soils are recommended. Bulbs are usually planted while dormant (i.e. in late summer or early autumn), but can be lifted and divided before the leaves die down in late spring. This plant has gained the Royal Horticultural Society’s

Award of Garden Merit The Award of Garden Merit (AGM) is a long-established annual award for plants by the British Royal Horticultural Society (RHS). It is based on assessment of the plants' performance under UK growing conditions. History The Award of Garden Merit ...

. A vigorous form with narrow leaves is grown in gardens under the name ''S. lutea'' var. ''angustifolia''.

Notes

References

External link

{{Taxonbar, from=Q733273 Amaryllidoideae Plants described in 1753 Taxa named by Carl Linnaeus Flora of the Balearic Islands Flora of Sardinia Flora of Spain Flora of Southeastern Europe Flora of Central Asia Flora of Turkmenistan Flora of Tajikistan Flora of the Transcaucasus Flora of Western Asia