Narcis

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Narcis -Narcissus (plant)

"Daffodil" redirects here. For other uses, see Daffodil (disambiguation).

"Daffodils" redirects here. For the Swedish musical group, see The Daffodils. For the poem by William Wordsworth, see I Wandered Lonely as a Cloud.

Narcissus ( /nɑrˈs ɪ s ə s /) (commonly called daffodil) is a genus of mainly hardy, mostly spring-flowering, herbaceous perennials in the Amaryllisfamily, subfamily Amaryllidoideae.^[1]Their native range includes Europe, North Africa and West Asia—their center of distribution is in the Western Mediterranean.^[2]The number of distinct species varies widely depending on how they are classified, with the disparity due to similarity between species and hybridization between species. The number of defined species ranges from 26 to more than 60, depending on the authority.^[3]Species and hybrids are widely used in gardens and landscapes, with various common names—daffodil, narcissus, jonquil— that are used variously to describe all or some of the genus.

Names

There are several possible derivations of the name. One of the most common relates to the story of the young man of Greek mythology named Narcissus, who became so obsessed with his own reflection that as he knelt and gazed into a pool of water, he fell into the water and drowned. In some variations, he died of starvation and thirst from sitting by the edge of the pool, transfixed by his own reflection. In both versions, the Narcissus plant sprang from where he died. Plinywrote that the plant was named instead for its narcoticproperties (ναρκάω narkao, "I grow numb" in Greek).^[4]

There are several plurals in common use: "Narcissuses", "Narcissi", and "Narcissus". This last is common in American English but is very rare in British usage. The American Webster's Third New International Dictionarygives plurals in the order "Narcissus", "Narcissuses", and "Narcissi", but the British Compact Oxford English Dictionary lists just "Narcissi" and "Narcissuses".

The name Daffodil is derived from an earlier "Affodell", a variant of Asphodel. The reason for the introduction of the initial "d" is not known, although a probable source is an etymological merging from the Dutch article "de," as in "De affodil." From at least the 16th century, "Daffadown Dilly", "daffadown dilly", and "daffydowndilly" have appeared as playful synonyms of the name.

Description

A daffodil closeup showing the various parts of the flower in detail

All Narcissus species have a central bell-, bowl-, or disc-shaped corona surrounded by a ring of six floral leaves called the perianth which is united into a tube at the forward edge of the 3-locular ovary. The seeds are black, round and swollen with a hard coat. The three outer segments are sepals, and the three inner segments are petals. Though the traditional daffodil of folklore, poetry, and field may have a yellow to golden-yellow color all over, both in the wild species and due to breeding, the perianth and corona may be variously colored. Breeders have developed some daffodils with double, triple, or ambiguously multiple rows and layers of segments, and several wild species also have known double variants.

Toxicity

All Narcissus species contain the alkaloid poison lycorine, mostly in the bulb but also in the leaves.^[5][6]

On 1 May 2009 a number of schoolchildren fell ill at Gorseland Primary School in Martlesham Heath, Suffolk, England, after a daffodil bulb was added to soup during a cookery class. The bulbs could often be confused with onions, thereby leading to incidents of accidental poisoning.^[6]

One of the most common dermatitisproblems for florists, "daffodil itch" involves dryness, fissures, scaling, and erythemain the hands, often accompanied by subungual hyperkeratosis (thickening of the skin beneath the nails). It is blamed on exposure to calcium oxalate in the sap.^[7][8]It has long been recognised that some cultivars provoke dermatitis more readily than others. The cultivars 'Actaea', 'Camparelle', 'Gloriosa', 'Grande Monarque', 'Ornatus', 'Princeps' and 'Scilly White' are known to do so.^[9]

Medicine

In the traditional Japanese medicine of kampo, wounds were treated with narcissus root and wheat flour paste;^[10]the plant, however, does not appear in the modern kampo herb list. The Roman physician Aulus Cornelius Celsus listed narcissus root in De Medicinaamong medical herbs, described as emollient, erodent, and "powerful to disperse whatever has collected in any part of the body". In one scientific study, the ethanolextract of the bulbs was found effective in one mouse model of nociception, para-benzoquinoneinduced abdominal constriction, but not in another, the hot plate test.^[11]

Daffodils are grown commercially near Brecon in Powys, Wales, to produce galantamine, a drug used to combat Alzheimer's disease.^[12]

Selected species

Main article: List of Narcissus species

Narcissus alcaracensis
Narcissus assoanus
Narcissus asturiensis
Narcissus bugei
Narcissus jonquilla (Jonquil)
Narcissus longispathus
Narcissus papyraceus (Paperwhite Daffodil)
Narcissus poeticus (Poet's Narcissus)
Narcissus pseudonarcissus (Wild Daffodil)
Narcissus radinganorum
Narcissus romieuxii
Narcissus tazetta
Narcissus triandrus (Angel's Tears)
Narcissus × medioluteus

Cultural importance

A field of daffodils in Cornwall, UK

The ancient Greeks believed the narcissus plant originated from the vain youth, Narcissus. He died after becoming so obsessed with his reflection in a pool he could not leave. The Greeks say that the gods turned his remains into the Narcissus flower. This also led to the daffodil's being a symbol of unrequited love.^{[citation needed]}

The Narcissus flower is perceived in the West as a symbol of vanity, in the East as a symbol of wealth and good fortune.^{[citation needed]}

The Narcissus is a national flower symbolising the new year or Newroz in the Kurdish culture.

In ancient China, a legend about a poor but good man holds he was brought many cups of gold and wealth by this flower. Since the flower blooms in early spring, it has also become a symbol of Chinese New Year. Narcissus bulb carving and cultivation is even an art akin to Japanese bonsai. If the Narcissus blooms on Chinese New Year, it is said to bring extra wealth and good fortune throughout the year. Its sweet fragrances are highly revered in Chinese culture.

In classical Persian literature, the narcissus is a symbol of beautiful eyes, together with other flowers that equal a beautiful face with a spring garden, such as roses for cheeks and violets for shining dark hair.

The daffodil is the national flower of Wales, where it is traditional to wear a daffodil or a leek on Saint David's Day (March 1).

In some countries the yellow variation is associated with Easter. The German for daffodil is Osterglocke, that is "Easter bell."

William Wordsworth's short poem I Wandered Lonely as a Cloud has become linked in the popular mind with the daffodils that form its main image.^{[citation needed]}

Various cancer charities around the world, including the American Cancer Society,^[13]New Zealand Cancer Society,^[14]Cancer Council Australia,^[15]and the Irish Cancer Society,^[16]use the daffodil as a fundraising symbol. "Daffodil Days", first instituted in Torontoin 1957 by the Canadian Cancer Society,^[17]are organized to raise funds by offering the flowers in return for a donation.

Cultivation

Narcissus is a popular subject as an ornamental plant for gardens, parks and as cut flowers, providing colour from the end of winter to the beginning of summer in temperateregions. Thousands of varieties and cultivars are available from both general and specialist suppliers. They are normally sold as dry bulbs to be planted in late Summer and Autumn (Fall). Over 140 varieties have gained the Royal Horticultural Society's Award of Garden Merit.

RHS classification system

Close-up photo of a daffodil's trumpet

For horticultural purposes, all Narcissuscultivars are split into 13 divisions by the Royal Horticultural Society,^[18]based partly upon flower form and partly upon genetic background. Growers register new daffodil cultivars by name and color with the Royal Horticultural Society, with more than 27,000 names registered as of 2008. Registered daffodils are given a division number and colour code.^[19]

Divisions

The divisions are:^[20]

Division 1: Trumpet Daffodil Cultivars One flower to a stem; corona (“trumpet”) as long as, or longer than the perianth segments (“petals”).
Division 2: Large-cupped Daffodil Cultivars One flower to a stem; corona (“cup”) more than one- third, but less than equal to the length of the perianth segments (“petals”).
Division 3: Small-cupped Daffodil Cultivars One flower to a stem; corona (“cup”) not more than one-third the length of the perianth segments (“petals”).
Division 4: Double Daffodil Cultivars One or more flowers to a stem, with doubling of the perianth segments or the corona or both.
Division 5: Triandrus Daffodil Cultivars Characteristics of N. triandrus clearly evident: usually two or more pendent flowers to a stem; perianth segments reflexed.
Division 6: Cyclamineus Daffodil Cultivars Characteristics of Narcissus cyclamineus clearly evident: one flower to a stem; perianth segments significantly reflexed; flower at an acute angle to the stem, with a very short pedicel (“neck”).
Division 7: Jonquilla and Apodanthus Daffodil Cultivars Characteristics of Sections Jonquilla or Apodanthi clearly evident: one to five (rarely eight) flowers to a stem; perianth segments spreading or reflexed; corona cup-shaped, funnel-shaped or flared, usually wider than long; flowers usually fragrant.
Division 8: Tazetta Daffodil Cultivars Characteristics of Section Tazettae clearly evident: usually three to twenty flowers to a stout stem; perianth segments spreading not reflexed; flowers usually fragrant.
Division 9: Poeticus Daffodil Cultivars Characteristics of the Narcissus poeticus group: usually one flower to a stem; perianth segments pure white; corona very short or disc-shaped, usually with a green and/or yellow centre and a red rim, but sometimes of a single colour; flowers usually fragrant.
Division 10: Bulbocodium Daffodil Cultivars Characteristics of Section Bulbocodium clearly evident: usually one flower to a stem; perianth segments insignificant compared with the dominant corona; anthers dorsifixed (i.e., attached more or less centrally to the filament); filament and style usually curved.
Division 11: Split-corona Daffodil Cultivars Corona split - usually for more than half its length.

a) Collar Daffodils: Split-corona daffodils with the corona segments opposite the perianth segments; the corona segments usually in two whorls of three.
b) Papillon Daffodils: Split-corona daffodils with the corona segments alternate to the perianth segments; the corona segments usually in a single whorl of six.

Division 12: Other Daffodil Cultivars Daffodil cultivars which do not fit the definition of any other division.
Division 13: Daffodils Distinguished Solely by Botanical Name Hybrids distinguished solely by botanical name are also assigned to this Division.

Colour code

Narcissus 'Geranium'

Daffodils may be self-colored—i.e., both perianth and corona identical in color and shade—or the colors between the perianth and corona may differ widely. Some perianths and some coronas also may contain more than one color or shade. Prevalent colors are all shades and tones of yellow, white, orange, pink, red and green. Pinks vary from apricot to rose in shades from pale to deep, and some more recent cultivars have hints of lavender or lilac. Reds vary from orange-red to salmon red to near scarlet. Pink, red, orange and green tones are mainly confined to the corona. However, breeders are currently working against the genera's natural pigmentation and genetic barriers to create cultivars in which pink, rose, red, orange and green tones suffuse or "bleed" from the more highly colored coronas onto the perianth segments of white or yellow. There are an increasing number of commercially available varieties which display this enhanced coloration.

RHS Color Classification:^[19]

W = White or whitish
G = Green
Y = Yellow
P = Pink
O = Orange
R = Red

The color classification lists the perianth color and then the corona color. In the case of multiple colors, the perianth colors are assigned from the outer edge of the perianth segments inward to their juncture with the base of the corona, while the corona colors are assigned from the base of the corona outward to the rim. Thus, Actaea, a Poeticus (Division 9) Daffodil, is officially classified as 9 W-GYR, while Accent, a Large Cup (Division 2) Daffodil possessing a white perianth and a pink corona, is officially classified as 2 W-P.

References

1. ^ Stevens, P.F. (2001 onwards), Angiosperm Phylogeny Website: Asparagales: Amaryllidoideae, http://www.mobot.org/mobot/research/apweb/orders/asparagalesweb.htm#AllAma

2. ^ Mark Nesbitt (2005). The Cultural History of Plants. Taylor & Francis. pp. 267–268. ISBN 978-0-415-92746-8. http://books.google.com/books?id=5JXBN7fqg0MC&pg=PA267. Retrieved 29 July 2012.

3. ^ Gordon R. Hanks (18 April 2002). Narcissus and Daffodil: The Genus Narcissus. CRC Press. pp. 30–31. ISBN 978-0-415-27344-2. http://books.google.com/books?id=4_kH_BffGDgC&pg=PA30. Retrieved 29 July 2012.

4. ^ Nigel Groom (30 June 1997). The New Perfume Handbook. Springer. pp. 225–226. ISBN 978-0-7514-0403-6. http://books.google.com/books?id=UYrDPqLVD-kC&pg=PA225. Retrieved 28 July 2012.

5. ^ Food and nutrition Daffodil dinner David Trinklein, Department of Horticulture, University of Missouri, Accessed March 2008