Ismene (plant)

Ismene, or Peruvian daffodil, is a genus of tender perennial bulbs bearing a strong resemblance to Hymenocallis, a genus into which Ismene had often been grouped in the past. However, its morphology differs from Hymenocallis in several significant ways: its vegetation, natural range, and chromosome number are all distinct.

Native to Peru, Bolivia, and Ecuador, Ismene can be difficult to grow in the United States.

Species

A list of Ismene species and their geographic distribution is given below.^[1]

• Ismene amancaes (Ruiz & Pav.) Herb., Appendix: 46 (1821). Peru.
• Ismene × deflexa Herb., Edwards's Bot. Reg. 25(Misc.): 88 (1839). I. longipetala × I. narcissiflora. Peru.
• Ismene festalis
• Ismene hawkesii (Vargas) Gereau & Meerow, Novon 3: 29 (1993). Peru (Cusco).
• Ismene longipetala (Lindl.) Meerow, in Fl. Ecuador 41(202): 26 (1990). (syn.: Elisena longipetala Lindl.). South Western Ecuador to North Western Peru.
• Ismene morrisonii (Vargas) Gereau & Meerow, Novon 3: 29 (1993). Peru (Apurímac).
• Ismene narcissiflora (Jacq.) M.Roem., Fam. Nat. Syn. Monogr. 4: 186 (1847). South Central Peru.
• Ismene nutans (Ker Gawl.) Herb., Appendix: 46 (1821). Peru (Cusco).
• Ismene pedunculata Herb., Amaryllidaceae: 222 (1837). Peru.
• Ismene ringens (Ruiz & Pav.) Gereau & Meerow, Novon 3: 29 (1993). Peru.
• Ismene sublimis (Herb.) Gereau & Meerow, Novon 3: 29 (1993). (syn.: Elisena sublimis Herb.) Peru (La Libertad).
• Ismene vargasii (Velarde) Gereau & Meerow, Syst. Bot. Monogr. 45: 1253 (1993). (syn.: Pseudostenomesson vargasii Velarde). Peru.

References

• Howard, Thad M. Bulbs for Warm Climates. Austin, Texas: University of Texas Press, 2001, pp 98–99.

External links

• [1] International Bulb Society's gallery of photographs