Cerinthe

Life-forms

Classification System: APG IV

Superregnum: Eukaryota
Regnum: Plantae
Cladus: Angiosperms
Cladus: Eudicots
Cladus: Core eudicots
Cladus: Asterids
Cladus: Lamiids
Ordo: Boraginales

Familia: Boraginaceae
Subfamilia: Boraginoideae
Tribus: Lithospermeae
Genus: Cerinthe
Species: C. glabra – C. major – C. minor – C. palaestina – C. retorta – C. tenuiflora
Source(s) of checklist:

Govaerts, R. et al. 2020. Cerinthe in Kew Science Plants of the World online. The Board of Trustees of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Published on the internet. Accessed: 2020 Oct 03. Reference page.

Name

Cerinthe L. Sp. Pl. 1: 137 (1753).

Lectotype species: Cerinthe major L., designated by Hitchcock, Prop. Brit. Bot. 128 (1929)

Synonyms

Heterotypic
Ceranthe (Rchb.) Opiz in F.Berchtold, Oekon.-Techn. Fl. Böhm. 2(2): 67 (1839).
Type species: Cerinthe acuta Opiz, nom. illeg. (= Cerinthe minor L.) (Lectotype designated by Z. Pouzar, Preslia 36: 338 (1964))
Cerinthe sect. Ceranthe Rchb., Fl. Germ. Excurs.: 339 (1832).

References
Primary references

Linnaeus, C. 1753. Species Plantarum. Tomus I: 137. Reference page.

Additional references

Hitchcock, A.S. & Green, M.L. 1929. Standard species of Linnaean genera of Phanerogamae (1753–1754). pp. 111–195 in International Botanical Congress. Cambridge (England), 1930. Nomenclature. Proposals by British Botanists. His Majesty's Stationery Office, London. Biblioteca Digital Reference page.

Links

Govaerts, R. et al. 2020. Cerinthe in Kew Science Plants of the World online. The Board of Trustees of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Published on the internet. Accessed: 2020 Oct 03. Reference page.
International Plant Names Index. 2020. Cerinthe. Published online. Accessed: Oct 03 2020.
Tropicos.org 2020. Cerinthe. Missouri Botanical Garden. Published on the internet. Accessed: 2020 Oct 03.
Catalogue of Life: 2021 Annual Checklist

Vernacular names
dansk: Voksurt
Deutsch: Wachsblumen
suomi: Vahakukat
עברית: דונגית
magyar: Szeplőlapu
հայերեն: Մոմախոտ
polski: Ośmiał
русский: Воскоцветник
svenska: Vaxblommor

Cerinthe is a genus of flowering plants in the family Boraginaceae,[1] known as honeyworts. The genus is characterised by a calyx made up of separate, rather than fused, sepals, a tubular corolla, and the schizocarpic fruit that divides into two parts at maturity, unlike most members of the family, where the fruit splits into four nutlets.[1] The genus has a circum-Mediterranean distribution, ranging from the Irano-Turanian Region in the east to Morocco in the west.[1]

Cerinthe has been known since ancient times. An early reference to it is in John Gerard's The Herbal, published in 1597, describing its appearance, growth habits, time of blooming and mentions that "there is a taste as if it were of new wax in the floures [sic] or leaves chewed, as the name doth seeme [sic] to import." Gerard gives a list of other names for Cerinthe applied by prior writers, including Avicenna "Auicen", Pliny the Elder, Conrad Gessner, Rembert Dodoens, Carolus Clusius, and Matthias de l'Obel.[2]

Etymology

The genus name is a compound of the Greek elements κερί / κηρός (= keri / kēros or keeros) "(bees)wax" and άνθος (=anthos) "flower" - whence "wax flower" - from the belief that bees extracted wax from the blossoms to make their honeycombs.[3]
Species

The following species are accepted by The Plant List:[4]

Cerinthe glabra Mill.
Cerinthe major L. Varieties include 'Purpurescens' with blue and purple flowers.[5]
Cerinthe minor L.
Cerinthe palaestina Eig & Sam.
Cerinthe retorta Sm.
Cerinthe tenuiflora Bertol.

References

Federico Selvi; Lorenzo Cecchi & Andrea Coppi (2009). "Phylogeny, karyotype evolution and taxonomy of Cerinthe L. (Boraginaceae)". Taxon. 58 (4): 1307–1325. doi:10.1002/tax.584019. JSTOR 27757019.
John Gerard (16 September 2015). The Herbal Or General History of Plants: The Complete 1633 Edition as Revised and Enlarged by Thomas Johnson. Courier Dover Publications. pp. 538–. ISBN 978-1-60660-080-1.
https://www.greekflora.gr/el/flowers/1204/Cerinthe-major Retrieved 10.33am on 10/6/19.
"Cerinthe". The Plant List. Retrieved 17 May 2015.
"Blue shrimp plant Cerinthe major 'Purpurascens'". The Plant Guide. Fine Gardening. Retrieved 5 June 2018.