Alrawia

Life-forms

Classification System: APG IV

Superregnum: Eukaryota
Regnum: Plantae
Cladus: Angiosperms
Cladus: Monocots
Ordo: Asparagales

Familia: Asparagaceae
Subfamilia: Scilloideae
Tribus: Hyacintheae
Subtribus: Hyacinthinae
Genus: Alrawia
Species: A. bellii – A. nutans
Name

Alrawia (Wendelbo) Perss. & Wendelbo, Bot. Not. 132: 201 (1979)

Type species: Alrawia nutans (Wendelbo) K. Perss. & Wendelbo Bot. Not. 132(2): 202. (1979)

Synonyms

Basionym
Hyacinthella sect. Alrawia Wendelbo

Distribution
Native distribution areas:

Asia-Temperate
Western Asia
Iran, Iraq.

References: Brummitt, R.K. 2001. TDWG – World Geographical Scheme for Recording Plant Distributions, 2nd Edition
References
Primary references

Persson, K. & Wendelbo, Per E.B. 1979. Botaniska Notiser 132(2): 201.

Links

Govaerts, R. et al. 2014. Alrawia in World Checklist of Selected Plant Families. The Board of Trustees of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Published on the internet. Accessed: 2014 Mar. 7. Reference page.
Tropicos.org 2014. Alrawia. Missouri Botanical Garden. Published on the internet. Accessed: 2014 Mar. 7.
International Plant Names Index. 2014. Alrawia. Published online. Accessed: Mar. 7 2014.

Alrawia is a genus of bulbous flowering plants in the family Asparagaceae, subfamily Scilloideae (also treated as the family Hyacinthaceae).[2] It is native to north-eastern Iraq and Iran.[1]

Description

Species of Alrawia grow from bulbs covered with a tunic that is grayish outside and often violet inside. They produce a single flowering stem (scape); the inflorescence consists of a raceme. Individual flowers are borne on a short stalk (pedicel) which is turned downwards when the flowers first appear.[3] The tepals are violet with whitish lobe tips and are joined at the base for up to half their length.[4] The pedicels lengthen and turn upwards after flowers are fertilized; the black seeds are globular or ovate.[3]
Species

As of March 2013, the World Checklist of Selected Plant Families recognized two species:[5]

Alrawia bellii (Baker) Perss. & Wendelbo

Flowers up to 1 cm (0.4 in) long; tube one quarter the length of the whole flower; western Iran.[4]

Alrawia nutans (Wendelbo) Perss. & Wendelbo

Flowers slightly longer, up to 1.3 cm (0.5 in) long; tube one half the length of the whole flower; north-east Iraq.[4]

Cultivation

Brian Mathew describes the species as "enthusiasts' plants", being "not very showy". They are said to be easy to cultivate in a bulb frame or alpine house but not to increase readily. As they occur naturally in regions with hot dry summers, the bulbs need to be dried out when dormant.[4]
References

"Alrawia", World Checklist of Selected Plant Families, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, retrieved 2013-03-27
Stevens, P.F., "Asparagales: Scilloideae", Angiosperm Phylogeny Website, retrieved 2013-03-27
"Alrawia (Wendelbo) Perss. & Wendelbo", eMonocot, archived from the original on 2013-04-19, retrieved 2013-03-27
Mathew, Brian (1987), The Smaller Bulbs, London: B.T. Batsford, ISBN 978-0-7134-4922-8, pp. 4–5
Search for "Alrawia", World Checklist of Selected Plant Families, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, retrieved 2013-03-27