mola c 1633 41 more art gallery mola narcissus echo narcissus pier

Narcissus /n?:r's?s?s/ is a genus of mostly spring perennial vegetation in the Amaryllidaceae (amaryllis) family. Various common labels 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 by the cup- or trumpet-shaped corona. The blooms are generally white or yellowish (orange or pink in garden kinds), with either uniform or contrasting colored tepals and corona.

Narcissus were popular in ancient civilisation, both medicinally and botanically, but formally referred to by Linnaeus in his Kinds Plantarum (1753). The genus is normally thought to have about ten portions with about 50 species. The amount of types has mixed, depending about how they are grouped, thanks to similarity between hybridization and species. The genus arose time in the Late Oligocene to Early Miocene epochs, in the Iberian peninsula and adjacent areas of southwest Europe. The exact origin of the true name Narcissus is undiscovered, but it is often associated with a Greek phrase for intoxicated (narcotic) and the misconception of the youth of that name who fell in love with his own representation. The English expression 'daffodil' is apparently produced from "asphodel", with which it was likened commonly.

The types are indigenous to meadows and woods in southern Europe and North Africa with a middle of variety in the American Mediterranean, particularly the Iberian peninsula. Both wild and cultivated plants have naturalised widely, and were released 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, disorders and diseases include viruses, fungi, the larvae of flies, mites and nematodes. Some Narcissus species have become extinct, while others are threatened by increasing urbanisation and tourism.

Historical accounts suggest narcissi have been cultivated from the initial times, but became increasingly popular in Europe following the 16th century and by the late 19th hundred years were an important commercial crop centred generally on the Netherlands. Today narcissi are popular as lower plants as ornamental plants in private and open public gardens. The long history of breeding has resulted in thousands of different cultivars. For horticultural purposes, narcissi are categorised into divisions, covering a variety of colours and shapes. Like other members of these family, narcissi produce a true number of different alkaloids, which provide some protection for the plant, but may be poisonous if accidentally ingested. This property has been exploited for medicinal utilization in traditional healing and has led to the production of galantamine for the treatment of Alzheimer's dementia. Long celebrated in literature and art, narcissi are associated with a true number of themes in different cultures, ranging from fatality to good fortune, and as icons of planting season. The daffodil is the countrywide flower of Wales and the sign of tumor charities in many countries. The looks of the wild flowers in springtime is associated with festivals in many places.

Narcissus is a genus of perennial herbaceous bulbiferous geophytes, dying again after flowering to an underground storage bulb. They regrow in the next season from brown-skinned ovoid bulbs with pronounced necks, and reach levels of 5-80 cm depending on the species. Dwarf species such as N. asturiensis have a maximum level of 5-8 cm, while Narcissus tazetta might expand as tall as 80 cm.

The plants are scapose, having an individual central leafless hollow flower stem (scape). Several green or blue-green, narrow, strap-shaped leaves arise from the bulb. The place stem usually bears a solitary bloom, but once in a while a cluster of plants (umbel). The bouquets, which can be conspicuous and white or yellow usually, sometimes both or rarely renewable, contain a perianth of three parts. Closest to the stem (proximal) is a floral pipe above the ovary, then an exterior ring made up of six tepals (undifferentiated sepals and petals), and a central disc to conical molded corona. The bouquets may hang down (pendent), or be erect. You will discover six pollen bearing stamens encircling a central style. The ovary is poor (below the floral parts) consisting of three chambers (trilocular). The super fruit consists of a dry capsule that splits (dehisces) launching numerous black seed products.

The bulb lays dormant after the leaves and blossom stem die back and has contractile origins that take it down further into the soil. The rose stem and leaves form in the light bulb, to emerge the following season. Most species are dormant from summer months to later winter, flowering in the spring, though a few types are fall months flowering.

Narcissus Pictures

Narcissus Greek Mythology http://www.flickr.com/photos/blindturtle

Greek Mythology: Echo

Giles Sutherland: Narcissus Reflected

Narcissus sp. cultivar Flickr Photo Sharing!