Texas Star Jonquils Narcissus x intermedius on old lot. Bulb

Narcissus /n?:r's?s?s/ is a genus of mainly spring perennial plant life in the Amaryllidaceae (amaryllis) family. Various common brands including daffodil,[notes 1] daffadowndilly,[3] narcissus, and jonquil are 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 plants are generally white or yellowish (orange or red in garden varieties), with either standard or contrasting coloured corona and tepals.

Narcissus were well known in early civilisation, both and botanically medicinally, but formally described by Linnaeus in his Kinds Plantarum (1753). The genus is generally considered to have about ten areas with approximately 50 species. The true variety of varieties has mixed, depending about how they are categorised, scheduled to similarity between kinds and hybridization. The genus arose some time in the Late Oligocene to Early Miocene epochs, in the Iberian peninsula and adjacent areas of southwest Europe. The precise origin of the name Narcissus is unfamiliar, but it is often associated with a Greek phrase for intoxicated (narcotic) and the misconception of the children of this name who fell in love with his own reflection. The English phrase 'daffodil' appears to be produced from "asphodel", with which it was likened commonly.

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

Historical accounts suggest narcissi have been cultivated from the initial times, but became ever more popular in Europe following the 16th hundred years and by the past due 19th century were an important commercial crop centred mostly on the Netherlands. Narcissi are popular as trim plants as ornamental crops in private and public gardens today. The long history of breeding has led to a large number of different cultivars. For horticultural purposes, narcissi are categorised into divisions, covering an array of shapes and colours. Like other members of the family, narcissi create a 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 utilization in traditional healing and has led to the production of galantamine for the treating Alzheimer's dementia. Long celebrated in skill and literature, narcissi are associated with a number of themes in several cultures, ranging from death to fortune, and as icons of springtime. The daffodil is the national blossom of Wales and the symbol of malignancy charities in many countries. The looks of the outrageous flowers in spring is associated with celebrations in many places.

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

The vegetation are scapose, having an individual central leafless hollow bloom stem (scape). Several blue-green or green, thin, strap-shaped leaves occur from the light. The vegetable stem usually bears a solitary bloom, but occasionally a cluster of blossoms (umbel). The plants, which are conspicuous and white or yellow usually, both or almost never green sometimes, consist of a perianth of three parts. Closest to the stem (proximal) is a floral pipe above the ovary, then an outside ring composed of six tepals (undifferentiated sepals and petals), and a central disk to conical shaped corona. The plants may hang down (pendent), or be erect. A couple of six pollen bearing stamens adjoining a central style. The ovary is substandard (below the floral parts) comprising three chambers (trilocular). The super fruit includes a dried up capsule that splits (dehisces) releasing numerous black seeds.

The bulb lies dormant after the leaves and flower stem die back and has contractile root base that take it down further in to the soil. The blossom leaves and stem form in the bulb, to emerge the following season. Most varieties are dormant from summer time to overdue winter, flowering in the planting season, though a few species are autumn flowering.

Narcissus Pictures

Roman hyacinths Hyacinthus orientalis with a lady bug flying away.

Narcissus Silver Chimes Tazetta Narcissi Circa 1914, this multi

Aletris admires the artful arrangement of Texas Star and petrified

Campellolebias brucei