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colchicum

{{Short description|Genus of flowering plants}}

{{Redirect|Bulbocodium|the daffodil|Narcissus bulbocodium}}

{{Automatic taxobox

|image=Colchicum speciosum000.jpg

|image_caption=Colchicum speciosum

|taxon=Colchicum

|authority=L.

|synonyms=

  • Abandium Adans.
  • Bulbocodium L.
  • Celsia Boehm. nom. illeg.
  • Eudesmis Raf. nom. superfl.
  • Fouha Pomel
  • Geophila Bergeret nom. reg.
  • Hermodactylum (R.Br.) Bartl. nom. inval.
  • Merendera Ramond
  • Monocaryum (R.Br.) Rchb.
  • Paludana Salisb. nom. illeg.
  • Synsiphon Regel

|synonyms_ref={{cite web |url=http://apps.kew.org/wcsp/synonomy.do?name_id=302745 |title=WCSP |work=World Checklist of Selected Plant Families |accessdate=February 10, 2014}}

}}

Colchicum ({{IPAc-en|ˈ|k|ɒ|l|tʃ|ᵻ|k|əm}} {{respell|KOL|chik|əm}} or {{IPAc-en|ˈ|k|ɒ|l|k|ᵻ|k|əm}} {{respell|KOL|kik|əm}}){{cite web |url=http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/colchicum?r=75&src=ref&ch=dic |title=Colchicum - Define Colchicum at Dictionary.com |work=Dictionary.com}} is a genus of perennial flowering plants containing around 160 species which grow from bulb-like corms. It is a member of the botanical family Colchicaceae, and is native to West Asia, Europe, parts of the Mediterranean coast, down the East African coast to South Africa and the Western Cape. In this genus, the ovary of the flower is underground. As a consequence, the styles are extremely long in proportion, often more than {{cvt|10|cm|0}}. All species in the genus are toxic.{{cite book |last=Barceloux |first=Donald G. |date=2008 |title=Medical Toxicology of Natural Substances: Foods, Fungi, Medicinal Herbs, Plants, and Venomous Animals. |publisher=Wiley |pages=693–702 |isbn=978-0471727613}}

Common names

The common names autumn crocus, meadow saffron and naked lady may be applied to the whole genus or to many of its species; they refer to the "naked" crocus-like flowers that appear in late summer or autumn, long before the strap-like foliage which appears in spring.{{cn|date=April 2025}}

Colchicum and Crocus look alike and can be confused by the casual observer. To add to the confusion, there are autumn-flowering species of crocus. However, colchicums have 3 styles and 6 stamens, while crocuses have 1 style supporting 3 long stigmas and 3 stamens.A Handbook of Crocus and Colchicum for Gardeners, page 154 In addition, the corm structures are quite different—in Colchicum, the corm is irregular, while in crocuses, the corm is like a flattened ball.A Handbook of Crocus and Colchicum for Gardeners, page 20, elsewhere Crocus is in the iris family, Iridaceae.

Etymology

The name of the genus derives from Κολχίς (Colchis), the Ancient Greek name for the region of კოლხეთი (Kolkhida) in modern Georgia (Caucasus). Colchis features in Greek mythology as the land to which the Argonauts journeyed in quest of the golden fleece and where Jason encountered Medea. The Greek toponym Colchis is thought by scholars to derive from the Urartian Qulḫa, pronounced "Kolcha" (guttural "ch" - as in Scots loch).Lordkipanidze, O. (1991). Archeology in Georgia, Weinheim, 110.

Relationships

Colchicum melanthioides, also known as Androcymbium melanthioides,{{citation |url=http://www.theplantlist.org/tpl1.1/record/kew-346509 |title=The Plant List |accessdate=27 May 2016}} is probably the best known species from the tropical regions. In contrast to most temperate colchicums, the flower and leaves are produced at the same time, the white flowers usually in a small corymb that is enclosed by white bracts. Close relatives such as Colchicum scabromarginatum (Androcymbium scabromarginatum) and Colchicum coloratum (Androcymbium burchellii) have flowers with very short stalks and may be pollinated by rodents.{{cite journal |author=Ciara Kleizen, Jeremy Midgley & Steven D. Johnson |year=2008 |title=Pollination systems of Colchicum (Colchicaceae) in Southern Africa: evidence for rodent pollination |journal=Annals of Botany |volume=102 |issue=5 |pages=747–755 |doi=10.1093/aob/mcn157 |pmid=18723860 |pmc=2712380}}

Cultivation

Temperate colchicums are commonly grown in gardens as ornamental flowers. Species found in cultivation include:

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There are also cultivars and hybrids such as:-

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  • C. 'Dick Trotter' (violet with white centre)
  • C. 'Disraeli' (purple white),
  • C. 'Giant' (red with white centre)
  • C. 'Harlekijn' (white with purple band)
  • C. 'Lilac Wonder' (lilac)
  • C. 'Pink Goblet' {{smallcaps|agm}}{{cite web |title=RHS Plant Selector - Colchicum 'Pink Goblet' |url=https://www.rhs.org.uk/Plants/45210/Colchicum-Pink-Goblet/Details |accessdate=15 April 2020}} (violet-purple)
  • C. 'Poseidon' (purple)
  • C. 'Rosy Dawn' {{smallcaps|agm}}{{cite web |title=RHS Plant Selector - Colchicum 'Rosy Dawn' |url=https://www.rhs.org.uk/Plants/95960/Colchicum-Rosy-Dawn/Details |accessdate=15 April 2020}} (rose pink)
  • C. 'Violet Queen' (purple)
  • C. 'Waterlily' {{smallcaps|agm}}{{cite web |title=RHS Plant Selector - Colchicum 'Waterlily' |url=https://www.rhs.org.uk/Plants/89869/Colchicum-Waterlily-(d)/Details |accessdate=15 April 2020}} (double, lilac-pink)

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Those marked {{smallcaps|agm}} have gained the Royal Horticultural Society's Award of Garden Merit (confirmed 2017).{{cite web |url=https://www.rhs.org.uk/plants/pdfs/agm-lists/agm-ornamentals.pdf |title=AGM Plants - Ornamental |date=July 2017 |page=22 |publisher=Royal Horticultural Society |accessdate=24 January 2018}}

In the United Kingdom, the National Collection of colchicums is maintained at Felbrigg Hall, Norfolk.

Medicinal uses and poisonous properties

Plants in this genus contain toxic amounts of the alkaloid colchicine which is used pharmaceutically to treat gout and Familial Mediterranean fever.{{cite journal |last1=Amrollahi-Sharifabadi |first1=Mohammad |last2=Seghatoleslami |first2=Ahmad |last3=Amrollahi-Sharifabadi |first3=Maryam |last4=Bayani |first4=Farajali |last5=Mirjalili |first5=Mahdi |title=Fatal Colchicine Poisoning by Accidental Ingestion of Colchicum persicum: A Case Report |journal=American Journal of Forensic Medicine & Pathology |date=December 2013 |volume=34 |issue=4 |pages=295–298 |doi=10.1097/PAF.0000000000000059 |pmid=24196723 |s2cid=12811749 }} The use of the roots and seeds in traditional medicine is thought to have arisen due to the presence of this drug.{{cite book |last=Stuart |first=M. |date=1979 |title=The Encyclopedia of Herbs and Herbalism |publisher=Orbis Publishing London |isbn=0-85613-067-2}}

Its leaves, corm and seeds are poisonous. Murderer Catherine Wilson is thought to have used it to poison a number of victims in the 19th century. The species known to contain the most lethal amount of colchicine is C. autumnale.{{cite book |last=Huxley |first=A. |date=1992 |title=The New RHS Dictionary of Gardening. |publisher=MacMillan Press |isbn=0-333-47494-5}}{{cite book |last=Frohne and Pfänder |date=1984 |title=Colour Atlas of Poisonous Plants. |publisher=Wolfe |isbn=0723408394}}{{cite book |last=Stary |first=F. |date=1983 |title=Poisonous Plants. |publisher=Hamlyn |isbn=0-600-35666-3}}{{cite book |last=Altmann. |first=H. |date=1980 |title=Poisonous Plants and Animals. |publisher=Chatto and Windus |isbn=0-7011-2526-8 |url-access=registration |url=https://archive.org/details/poisonousplantsa0000altm}}

Species

The following are the species included in the genus Colchicum.{{cite web |url=http://www.theplantlist.org/tpl1.1/search?q=colchicum |title=Search results — The Plant List |work=theplantlist.org}} Many species previously classified in Androcymbium, Bulbocodium and Merendera were moved to Colchicum based on molecular genetic evidence.{{cite journal |author=John Manning, Felix Forest and Annika Vinnersten |year=2007 |title=The genus Colchicum L. redefined to include Androcymbium Willd. based on molecular evidence |journal=Taxon |volume=56 |issue=3 |pages=872–882 |doi=10.2307/25065868 |jstor=25065868|bibcode=2007Taxon..56..872M }}{{cite journal |author=Karin Persson |year=2007 |title=Nomenclatural synopsis of the genus Colchicum (Colchicaceae), with some new species and combinations |journal=Botanische Jahrbücher |volume=127 |issue=2 |pages=165–242 |doi=10.1127/0006-8152/2007/0127-0165}}{{cite journal |author=Alberto del Hoyo, José Luis García-Marín & Joan Pedrola-Monfort |year=2009 |title=Temporal and spatial diversification of the African disjunct genus Androcymbium (Colchicaceae) |journal=Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution |volume=53 |issue=3 |pages=848–861 |pmid=19699811 |doi=10.1016/j.ympev.2009.08.005}}Sunset Western Garden Book, 1995:606–607 Androcymbium is currently considered a separate genus by some.{{cite web |url=http://apps.kew.org/wcsp/synonomy.do?name_id=299036 |title=WCSP |work=World Checklist of Selected Plant Families |accessdate=February 10, 2014}}

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References

{{Reflist|32em}}

Sources

  • Suite 101. Plants and Bulbs: Hardy Fall-Blooming Bulbs for Your Garden
  • [https://www.veseys.com/ca/en/learn/guide/bulbinfo/colchicumf Veseys: Information for gardeners]
  • A Handbook of Crocus and Colchicum for Gardeners, Bowles, E. A., D. Van Nostrand Company, Inc., 1952
  • The European Garden Flora: A Manual for the Identification of Plants Cultivated in Europe, both Out-of-Doors and Under Glass, Volume 1, Walters, S. M., et al., editors, Cambridge University Press, 1984

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Category:Colchicaceae genera

Category:Medicinal plants