''Tulipa alberti'', or Albert's tulip, is a

species A species () is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate sexes or mating types can produce fertile offspring, typically by sexual reproduction. It is the basic unit of Taxonomy (biology), ...

flowering plant Flowering plants are plants that bear flowers and fruits, and form the clade Angiospermae (). The term angiosperm is derived from the Ancient Greek, Greek words (; 'container, vessel') and (; 'seed'), meaning that the seeds are enclosed with ...

in the

family Family (from ) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). It forms the basis for social order. Ideally, families offer predictabili ...

Liliaceae. It has long reddish, orange or pink flowers. It comes from the mountains of

Central Asia Central Asia is a region of Asia consisting of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan. The countries as a group are also colloquially referred to as the "-stans" as all have names ending with the Persian language, Pers ...

Description

It has an ovoid shaped bulb, which is in diameter. Z. Botschantzeva It has an erect,

glaucous ''Glaucous'' (, ) is used to describe the pale grey or bluish-green appearance of the surfaces of some plants, as well as in the names of birds, such as the glaucous gull (''Larus hyperboreus''), glaucous-winged gull (''Larus glaucescens''), ...

stem which is tall. It has 3-4 leaves, which are glaucous green, George Nicholson (Editor) without blotches, and broad. They are lanceolate (lance shaped), or crispate (curled). The basal leaf is around long, and around wide. Other leaves can be by wide, and undulated, or wavy. It has a solitary flower, which blooms in mid spring, in April. The cup-shaped flower, is similar in shape to those of ''

Tulipa greigii ''Tulipa greigii'', (Greig's tulip) is a species of tulip native to Central Asia and Iran. Taxonomy The Latin specific epithet ''greigi'' honors the Russian Samuel Greig, (1735-1788, "Father of the Russian navy") due to Greig once being preside ...

'', or ''

Tulipa armena ''Tulipa armena'' is a species of flowering plant in the Liliaceae family. It is referred to by the common name Armenian tulip, and is native to the historical Armenian Highlands as the name implies; current regions of Armenia, modern day Turkey, ...

''. The blossoms come in a range of colours, from orange with reddish tint, to orange, orange-pink, red, and dark claret. There is an occasional yellow form. The flowers have 3 inner petals and 3 outer petals. Normally the three inner tepals of ''T. alberti'' are obtuse, and folded to the inside, and the three outer tepals are sub-acute, and folded to the outside. The outer tepals are long and wide. The petals are marked at the base with a blotch of lemon yellow, or yellow margined with red-brown, dark purple, or black. The rare yellow forms of both ''T. greigii'' and ''T. alberti'' can have a crimson blotch on the inner side of the petal. In the

stamen The stamen (: stamina or stamens) is a part consisting of the male reproductive organs of a flower. Collectively, the stamens form the androecium., p. 10 Morphology and terminology A stamen typically consists of a stalk called the filament ...

, it has 2.9 cm long

stamens The stamen (: stamina or stamens) is a part consisting of the male reproductive organs of a flower. Collectively, the stamens form the androecium., p. 10 Morphology and terminology A stamen typically consists of a stalk called the filamen ...

, small yellow, filaments 1.4 cm long and

anthers The stamen (: stamina or stamens) is a part consisting of the male reproductive organs of a flower. Collectively, the stamens form the androecium., p. 10 Morphology and terminology A stamen typically consists of a stalk called the filamen ...

similar in length to the filaments, which are dark purple in shade, or sometimes yellow in the pale coloured forms. It has a peduncle, which is erect, pubescent, long. After flowering, it produces a seed capsule. It has a light green, cylindrical

ovary The ovary () is a gonad in the female reproductive system that produces ova; when released, an ovum travels through the fallopian tube/ oviduct into the uterus. There is an ovary on the left and the right side of the body. The ovaries are end ...

, which is 2.2 cm long and 0.7 cm wide. The ovoid with tapering tops, seed capsule is 4.3 cm long and 2.5 cm wide. Inside are bright brown, sub-triangular seeds, 0.6 cm long and 0.5 cm wide.

Biochemistry

Most tulips are

diploid Ploidy () is the number of complete sets of chromosomes in a cell, and hence the number of possible alleles for autosomal and pseudoautosomal genes. Here ''sets of chromosomes'' refers to the number of maternal and paternal chromosome copies, ...

, having two sets of

chromosomes A chromosome is a package of DNA containing part or all of the genetic material of an organism. In most chromosomes, the very long thin DNA fibers are coated with nucleosome-forming packaging proteins; in eukaryotic cells, the most importa ...

. Most species of Tulipa have the same basic chromosome number, 2n = 2x = 24. Natural

cytokinin Cytokinins (CK) are a class of plant hormones that promote cell division, or cytokinesis, in plant roots and shoots. They are involved primarily in Cell (biology), cell growth and cellular differentiation, differentiation, but also affect apical ...

-like substances were found in

ethanol Ethanol (also called ethyl alcohol, grain alcohol, drinking alcohol, or simply alcohol) is an organic compound with the chemical formula . It is an Alcohol (chemistry), alcohol, with its formula also written as , or EtOH, where Et is the ps ...

extracts from the bulbs.

Taxonomy

The

genus Genus (; : genera ) is a taxonomic rank above species and below family (taxonomy), family as used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In bino ...

name (of ''Tulipa'') comes the Latinized version of the Turkish name ''tulbend'' meaning a turban. It is commonly known as Albert's tulip. The

specific epithet In Taxonomy (biology), taxonomy, binomial nomenclature ("two-term naming system"), also called binary nomenclature, is a formal system of naming species of living things by giving each a name composed of two parts, both of which use Latin gramm ...

''alberti'', refers

Johann Albert von Regel Johann Albert von Regel (; 12 December 1845, Zürich – 6 July 1908, Odessa) was a Swiss-Russian physician and botanist. He was the son of botanist Eduard August von Regel (1815–1892). He studied medicine in Saint Petersburg, Göttingen, Vienna ...

, who was the son of Eduard August von Regel. Johann was with him while he collected during a botanical excursions in Turkestan and in the Pamir region of Central Asia. ''T. alberti'' was originally found in

Turkestan Turkestan,; ; ; ; also spelled Turkistan, is a historical region in Central Asia corresponding to the regions of Transoxiana and East Turkestan (Xinjiang). The region is located in the northwest of modern day China and to the northwest of its ...

, and then described and published by

Eduard August von Regel Eduard Model Accessories is a Czech manufacturer of plastic models and finescale model accessories. History Formed in 1989 in the city of Most, Eduard began in a rented cellar as a manufacturer of photoetched brass model components. Fol ...

(1815–1892), German botanist in Trudy Imp. S.-Peterburgsk. Bot. Sada (Proceedings of the Petersburg Botanical Garden) Vol.5 on page 264 in 1877. It was also published by Regel in

Gartenflora ''Gartenflora'' was a German illustrated botanical magazine published in the period 1852–1940. History Founded in 1852 and edited by Eduard von Regel, the botanist and future director of the Saint Petersburg Botanical Garden, the magazine appe ...

Vol.26 on page 257 in 1877. In taxonomic theory, it should be called ''albertii'' (with an extra i at the end), but due to the results of a taxonomic conference Shenzhen ICN Art. 60.8, it was deemed permissible to leave it as ''alberti''. It is also an accepted name and was verified by

United States Department of Agriculture The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) is an executive department of the United States federal government that aims to meet the needs of commercial farming and livestock food production, promotes agricultural trade and producti ...

and the

Agricultural Research Service The Agricultural Research Service (ARS) is the principal in-house research agency of the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA). ARS is one of four agencies in USDA's Research, Education and Economics mission area. ARS is charged with ext ...

on 16 November 1993. Some sources still call it ''Tulipa albertii''.

Distribution and habitat

It is

native Native may refer to: People * '' Jus sanguinis'', nationality by blood * '' Jus soli'', nationality by location of birth * Indigenous peoples, peoples with a set of specific rights based on their historical ties to a particular territory ** Nat ...

to the

temperate In geography, the temperate climates of Earth occur in the middle latitudes (approximately 23.5° to 66.5° N/S of the Equator), which span between the tropics and the polar regions of Earth. These zones generally have wider temperature ran ...

areas of

, or Middle Asia.

Range

It is found in

Kazakhstan Kazakhstan, officially the Republic of Kazakhstan, is a landlocked country primarily in Central Asia, with a European Kazakhstan, small portion in Eastern Europe. It borders Russia to the Kazakhstan–Russia border, north and west, China to th ...

Kyrgyzstan Kyrgyzstan, officially the Kyrgyz Republic, is a landlocked country in Central Asia lying in the Tian Shan and Pamir Mountains, Pamir mountain ranges. Bishkek is the Capital city, capital and List of cities in Kyrgyzstan, largest city. Kyrgyz ...

(around

Lake Balkhash Lake Balkhash, also spelt Lake Balqash (, , ), is a lake in southeastern Kazakhstan, one of the largest lakes in Asia and the 15th largest in the world. It is located in the eastern part of Central Asia and sits in the Balkhash-Alakol Basin, ...

,) and

Uzbekistan , image_flag = Flag of Uzbekistan.svg , image_coat = Emblem of Uzbekistan.svg , symbol_type = Emblem of Uzbekistan, Emblem , national_anthem = "State Anthem of Uzbekistan, State Anthem of the Republ ...

. It is found on the

Tien Shan mountains The Tian Shan, also known as the Tengri Tagh or Tengir-Too, meaning the "Mountains of God/Heaven", is a large system of mountain ranges in Central Asia. The highest peak is Jengish Chokusu at high and located in Kyrgyzstan. Its lowest point is ...

(crossing the three countries), alongside other tulips such as ''

Tulipa kaufmanniana ''Tulipa kaufmanniana'', the water lily tulip, is a species of Tulipa, tulip native to Central Asia. Description The tulip has a short stem, long,Richard Wilford making it a dwarf tulip.The National Gardening Association; Bob Beckstrom, Kara ...

'' and ''Tulip zenaidae'' (now classed as a synonym of ''Tulipa lehmanniana'' Merckl.).

Habitat

It grows on the gravelly slopes.

Culture

In 1997, a set of

stamps Stamp or Stamps or Stamping may refer to: Official documents and related impressions * Postage stamp, used to indicate prepayment of fees for public mail * Ration stamp, indicating the right to rationed goods * Revenue stamp, used on documents to ...

with images of tulips was released in Kazakhstan. The series included, '' Tulipa regelii'', ''Tulipa greigii'' and ''Tulipa alberti''.

References

Other sources

* Huxley, A., ed. 1992. The new Royal Horticultural Society dictionary of gardening * Komarov, V. L. et al., eds. 1934–1964. Flora SSSR. * Raamsdonk, L. W. D. van & T. de Vries. 1995. Species relationships and taxonomy in Tulipa subg. Tulipa (Liliaceae). Pl. Syst. Evol. 195:40. * Walters, S. M. et al., eds. 1986–2000. European garden flora.

External links

* {{Taxonbar, from=Q58834699 alberti Plants described in 1877 Flora of Kyrgyzstan Flora of Kazakhstan Flora of Uzbekistan