Narcissus Bulb Fly – 028762 » Merodon equestris – Narcissus Bulb

Narcissus /n?:r's?s?s/ is a genus of mostly spring perennial plants in the Amaryllidaceae (amaryllis) family. Various common titles including daffodil,[notes 1] daffadowndilly,[3] narcissus, and jonquil are being used to describe all or some members of the genus. Narcissus has conspicuous flowers with six petal-like tepals surmounted with a cup- or trumpet-shaped corona. The blooms are generally white or yellowish (orange or red in garden kinds), with either standard or contrasting colored corona and tepals.

Narcissus were popular in traditional civilisation, both medicinally and botanically, but formally referred to by Linnaeus in his Varieties Plantarum (1753). The genus is generally considered to have about ten parts with around 50 species. The true volume of varieties has mixed, depending on how they are categorized, credited to similarity between varieties and hybridization. The genus arose a while in the Late Oligocene to Early Miocene epochs, in the Iberian peninsula and adjacent areas of southwest Europe. The exact origins of the true name Narcissus is mysterious, but it is often linked to a Greek expression for intoxicated (narcotic) and the misconception of the youngsters of this name who fell in love with his own reflection. The English term 'daffodil' is apparently derived from "asphodel", with which it was compared commonly.

The varieties are indigenous to meadows and woods in southern Europe and North Africa with a centre of diversity in the European Mediterranean, particularly the Iberian peninsula. Both wild and cultivated plants have naturalised widely, and were created into the ASIA to the tenth century prior. Narcissi tend to be long-lived bulbs, which propagate by division, but are also insect-pollinated. Known pests, diseases and disorders include viruses, fungi, the larvae of flies, nematodes and mites. Some Narcissus species have become extinct, while some are threatened by increasing urbanisation and tourism.

Historical accounts suggest narcissi have been cultivated from the initial times, but became ever more popular in Europe after the 16th hundred years and by the past due 19th hundred years were an important commercial crop centred mainly on the Netherlands. Narcissi are popular as slice blossoms and since ornamental crops in private and general public gardens today. The long history of breeding has resulted in a large number of different cultivars. For horticultural purposes, narcissi are classified into divisions, covering a wide range of shapes and colours. Like other members with their family, narcissi create a true number of different alkaloids, which provide some protection for the plant, but may be poisonous if ingested inadvertently. This property has been exploited for medicinal use within traditional healing and has led to the production of galantamine for the treatment of Alzheimer's dementia. Long celebrated in artwork and books, narcissi are associated with a number of themes in different cultures, ranging from loss of life to fortune, and as icons of springtime. The daffodil is the national flower of Wales and the icon of cancer tumor charities in many countries. The looks of the wild flowers in planting season is associated with celebrations in many places.

Narcissus is a genus of perennial herbaceous bulbiferous geophytes, dying back after flowering to an underground storage light. They regrow in the next 12 months from brown-skinned ovoid bulbs with pronounced necks, and reach levels of 5-80 cm depending on the species. Dwarf kinds such as N. asturiensis have a maximum level of 5-8 cm, while Narcissus tazetta may grow as large as 80 cm.

The vegetation are scapose, having a single central leafless hollow rose stem (scape). Several green or blue-green, small, strap-shaped leaves happen from the light bulb. The plant stem usually bears a solitary bloom, but sometimes a cluster of plants (umbel). The bouquets, which are conspicuous and white or yellow usually, sometimes both or rarely inexperienced, consist of a perianth of three parts. Closest to the stem (proximal) is a floral pipe above the ovary, then an outer ring composed of six tepals (undifferentiated sepals and petals), and a central disc to conical designed corona. The bouquets may hang down (pendent), or be erect. You will find six pollen bearing stamens surrounding a central style. The ovary is second-rate (below the floral parts) consisting of three chambers (trilocular). The fruit includes a dried capsule that splits (dehisces) launching numerous black seeds.

The bulb is dormant following the leaves and flower stem die back and has contractile roots that draw it down further into the soil. The flower leaves and stem form in the light bulb, to emerge the next season. Most varieties are dormant from summertime to late winter, flowering in the planting season, though a few species are autumn flowering.

Narcissus Pictures

narcissus bulb fly, Merodon equestris Diptera: Syrphidae 1543896

Narcissus Bulb Fly Merodon equestris on Coreopsis

Merodon equestris Narcissus bulb fly Discover Life

Fig. 101: Narcissus Bulb Fly,