Botany Reference Libraries

Dahlia is a genus of bushy, summer and autumn flowering, tuberous perennials. They are originally from Mexico and also the national flower of that country. In 1872 a box of Dahlia roots were sent from Mexico to the Netherlands. Only one plant survived the trip, but produced spectacular red flowers with pointed petals. Nurserymen bred from this plant, which was named Dahlia juarezii with...

Datura wrightii (a poisonous weed) is sometimes used as a hallucinogen. It is commonly called Sacred Datura. Datura wrightii is classified as a deliriant, or an anticholinergic. In the US it is, however, called Western Jimson Weed.

Daylily comprises the small genus Hemerocallis of flowering plants in the family Hemerocallidaceae. The name Hemerocallis is based on the Greek words for day and beauty, which reflects the fact that the individual flowers last for only one day. They open at sunrise and wither at sunset, to be replaced by another one (sometimes two or none) on the same stem the next day. Originally from...

The Heartsease (Viola triocolor) is a common European wild flower and grows as an annual or short-lived perennial. In North America, where it spread widely after its introduction, it is known as the Johnny Jump Up (though this name is also applied to similar native species such as the Yellow Pansy). It is the progenitor of the cultivated Pansy, and is therefore sometimes called the Wild Pansy;...

Hebe is a genus of plants native to New Zealand, Australia, Papua New Guinea, Rapa Nui, the Falkland Islands, and South America. There are over 100 species of Hebe, of which 90 occur in New Zealand. Of the 90 present in New Zealand, only H. salicifolia and H. elliptica extend beyond New Zealand, the remainder being endemic. They are named after the Greek goddess of youth, Hebe. Hebe has four...

Waterlilies (Nymphaeaceae) belong to the Order Nymphaeales. They are tuberous plants that are rooted in soil in bodies of water, with leaves and flowers floating on the water surface. The leaves are round, with a radial notch in Nymphaea and Nuphar, but fully circular in Victoria. Modern genetic tests of the flowering plants by the Angiosperm Phylogeny Group have shown that the water-lilies...

The Pansy or Pansy Violet is a cultivated garden flower. It is derived from the wildflower called the Heartsease or Johnny Jump Up (Viola tricolor), and is sometimes given the subspecies name Viola tricolor hortensis. However, many garden varieties are hybrids and are referred to as Viola × wittrockiana. The name "pansy" also appears as part of the common name of a number of wild flowers...

Orchids (Orchidaceae family) are among the largest and most diverse of the flowering plant (angiosperm) families. There are over 800 described genera and 25,000 (some sources give 30,000) species, and perhaps another 60,000 hybrids and cultivars produced by horticulturalists. The Kew World Checklist of Orchids includes about 24,000 accepted species and about 800 new species are added each year....

Phlox is a genus of perennial flower that blooms in early spring. They are native mainly to temperate North America, with a few species in eastern Asia. Phlox species are very sensitive to drought and require plenty of moisture. Phlox range in color from pale blue to bright red to white. Some species such as Smooth Phlox (Phlox glaberrima) grow to 1.5 m tall, while others, such as Creeping...

Stellaria is the genus which includes stitchworts and chickweeds ( flowering plants in the family Caryophyllaceae). Chickweeds are used as food plants by the larvae of some Lepidoptera species including Riband Wave and Setaceous Hebrew Character.