| Erysimum cheiri | |
|---|---|
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| (unranked): | Angiosperms |
| (unranked): | Eudicots |
| (unranked): | Rosids |
| Order: | Brassicales |
| Family: | Brassicaceae |
| Genus: | Erysimum |
| Species: | E. cheiri |
| Binomial name | |
| Erysimum cheiri (L.) Crantz |
|
| Synonyms | |
|
Cheiranthus cheiri |
|
Erysimum cheiri (syn. Cheiranthus cheiri) is a species of wallflower known by the common name Aegean wallflower in English. It is also known as giroflée and revenelle in French, goldlack in German, alhelí in Spanish and violacciocca in Italian.[1]
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The plant is native to Europe but it is common and widespread on other continents where it is an introduced species.
This is a biennial or perennial herb with one or more highly branching stems reaching heights of 15 to 80 centimeters. The leaves are generally narrow and pointed and may be up to 20 centimeters long. The top of the stem is occupied by a club-shaped inflorescence of flowers. Each flower has purplish-green sepals and rounded petals which are two to three centimeters long and in shades of bright yellows to reds and purples. The flowers fall away to leave long fruits which are narrow, hairy siliques several centimeters in length.
This is a popular ornamental plant. A miniature yellow double leafed wallflower Erysimum cheiri was rediscovered by Rev. Henry Harpur-Crewe (before 1883) and is now named "Harpur Crewe".[2] Other bred varieties may vary quite a bit in appearance from the wild plant. One cultivar, 'Chelsea Jacket', is a winner of the Royal Horticultural Society's Award of Garden Merit. Other varieties such as Blood Red Covent Garden are easy to grow and often benefit from being sown and left to their own devices, growing on patches of empty land with little effort required to maintain them, providing aesthetically sound blooms which produce heady scents.