Ledebouria

Ledebouria
Silver squill, Ledebouria socialis
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Monocots
Order: Asparagales
Family: Asparagaceae
Subfamily: Scilloideae
Subtribe: Massoniinae
Genus: Ledebouria
Roth
Synonyms[1]
  • Eratobotrys Fenzl ex Endl.
  • Xeodolon Salisb.

Ledebouria is a genus of African bulbous perennial herbs in the Asparagus family, Asparagaceae, subfamily Scilloideae.[2] Most members were previously part of the genus Scilla. A number of species are grown by cacti and succulent enthusiasts for their patterned leaves.[3]

Most of the species are native to Madagascar and Africa (except North Africa),[4] but a few are from India, Sri Lanka or the Arabian Peninsula.[1]

The genus name of Ledebouria is in honour of Carl Friedrich von Ledebour (1786–1851), a German-Estonian botanist.[5] It was first described and published in Nov. Pl. Sp. on page 194 in 1821.[4]

  1. ^ a b Kew World Checklist of Selected Plant Families
  2. ^ Stevens, P.F., Angiosperm Phylogeny Website: Asparagales: Scilloideae
  3. ^ Venter, S. (2008). Synopsis of the genus Ledebouria Roth (Hyacinthaceae) in South Africa. Herbertia 62: 85–155.
  4. ^ a b "Ledebouria Roth | Plants of the World Online | Kew Science". Plants of the World Online. Retrieved 14 October 2021.
  5. ^ Burkhardt, Lotte (2018). Verzeichnis eponymischer Pflanzennamen – Erweiterte Edition [Index of Eponymic Plant Names – Extended Edition] (pdf) (in German). Berlin: Botanic Garden and Botanical Museum, Freie Universität Berlin. doi:10.3372/epolist2018. ISBN 978-3-946292-26-5. S2CID 187926901. Retrieved 1 January 2021.